In Time
by Koezh
Summary: Sequel to Change. How are Jane and Lisbons twins faring with Red John for a father? Are they killers too...
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own the mentalist guys and I get no money from this

**Author's Note: **Hello readers! Here is a sequel to Change, the second ending, _**not**_ the first happy one, this is after Jane and Lisbon have died. This chapter is in italics as it's the present whereas the other chapters will be the past. You'll understand when you read it, I promise ;)

_Time seemed to freeze as she stood in the room, the very breeze stopped blowing. Everything became still except for her. She felt her slow heartbeat pounding in her chest as she breathed slowly in and out._

_She couldn't bring herself to move, she could hear the drops falling from the bloody blade and hitting the floor but she couldn't take her emerald eyes off the the body lying at her feet._

_He would be proud of her, the body was her first victim. He would be proud of her. She didn't feel proud or happy, she wasn't regretful or sad either. She just felt hollow with this emptiness consuming her._

_She had killed someone, ended a life. She had looked deep into her victim's eyes as she ended their life. That's what he'd told her to do and she'd done it, he would be proud._

_She knelt down beside the corpse and dipped her fingers in the warm sticky blood. The very idea should have repulsed her, it always had but she had to, she just knew she had to as drew the smiley face on the wall. Three fingers, in a clockwise direction. She couldn't be bothered to get a glove. He would still be proud of her._

_She finished the face and fell to her knees before it and let the blade slip from her fingers as police burst through the door. She knew they'd come sooner or later, it hadn't stopped her. She wondered who had called them, she didn't care really._

_"Put your hands in the air!" yelled one of them, an asian man, Cho._

_She raised them slowly and was aware of hand cuffs clasping her wrists as she was pulled to her feet. It felt like a weird dream she was having, she felt so detached it seemed impossible, but it was real and it was possible. She had had her first kill, she was now a murderer._

_She was silent as they read her her rights and drove her to the interrogation room. They sat her in a chair and Cho sat opposite her._

_"Why?"_

_Cho asked the question as bluntly as ever, just a single word, so like him. She just shrugged. Why was a long, complicated and confusing story. She was sure Cho didn't really want to hear it. What did it matter?_

_Another man came in the room. He was a tall brown haired man she knew well, Rigsby. He sat down beside Cho and joined him in staring at her, their eyes a mixture of sadness and pity._

_"Name?" Rigsby said finally._

_"Sarah. Sarah Walker, Sarah Jane, hell you can call me bloody Red John junior for all I care."_

_At Sarah's answer Cho slammed his fist on the table furiously causing them all to jump at his rare outburst of raw emotion._

_"Damn it Sarah! This is _not_ a game! You are just like your father!" Cho roared angrily as he stood up and paced around the room._

_"Which father? The one who sired me or the one who raised me?" she inquired with a hint of genuine curiosity._

_"Both," Cho whispered coldly._

_Another man walked hurridly into the room, he whispered something to Cho and then left. Sarah didn't recognize him, she supposed it didn't matter._

_"We're gonna take you to a holding cell," Cho explained as he led her to the door, "you're a minor and can't be interviewed till you have a legal guardian or some other crap."_

_Sarah said nothing as she was locked in a holding cell and her handcuffs were finally removed. She rubbed her wrists gently and went to brush her golden hair out of her eyes, she stopped when she saw the blood on her fingers._

_Slowly she sat down on the bed feeling thoughtful. Blood. Such an important thing. It was to her anyway, her life, her twin's life. Everything had to to with blood if you thought about. It had all started when blood had been spilled and put onto the wall, the blood of an elder sister she'd never know._

_Sarah knew she should be thinking of the hopelessness of her future but all she could think about was the hopelessness of her past. She used to feel lucky. She had had a loving father, loving friends and a precious twin brother. Even if her mother had died in labour, she felt lucky and happy. She wished so bad for Red John's lies to be true but they weren't._

_The harsh reality was her parents had been murdered and she had been raised by the bastard responsible. The cold hearted, cruel, murderous bastard that had slaughtered women for fun, yet he had also held her when she cried, tucked her in at night... And now she was a murderer too, at just 15._

_So much had changed in the past 3 years. No, everything had changed. Spilled blood had taken her friends, brother and father all in different ways. Three years ago she'd felt lucky and happy, now she was cursed and miserable. Most of it wasn't even her fault._

_Sarah lay down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. It had all began three years ago..._

**Author's Note: **So what do you guys think? Good idea, bad idea? Please review, it's a very different idea and I'm not sure if you like it :l


	2. Chapter 1: Truth or Dare?

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Mentalist, and make no money from this

**Author's Note:** Hello readers, thanks so much to jisbon-sessed and Iloveplotbunnies for reviewing :) this may seem a bit confusing but it'll make sense later. I apologize for taking so long to write this but my Dad's laptop is acting up. Btw italics is the present when Sarah's been arrested and the rest is the past. I know I can't force you to review but feedback is always appreciated :)

"Can we join you, please?" begged Jane looking at the trio with her large pleading eyes.

It was Teresa Rigsby's twelfth birthday and she had invited her two best friends -Sarah and Sebastian- for a sleepover but her little brother and sister insisted on coming in every five minutes to ask to join them. Teresa found it annoying but Sebastian and Sarah thought it was hilarious.

"Just for a little while and then we'll leave you alone, promise," Jane continued to plead.

"And you promise?" questioned Teresa.

"Promise," Jane and Patrick said together.

"Fine, sit in the circle," Teresa agreed reluctantly as the pair squeezed in beside them.

"What are we playing exactly?" wondered the four year old red head.

"Truth or dare," Sarah answered grinning, she loved truth or dare and was notorious for both difficult dares and awkward questions.

Sarah spun the bottle around and it swirled around before slowly pulling to a halt on nine year old Jane.

"Truth or dare?" Sarah asked her smile widening as dares and truths swirled around her mind.

"Dare," said Jane shifting slightly. Sarah thought for a moment, she'd go easy on the younger girl.

"I dare you to steal one of your parents case files, so we can look at it," Sarah challenged.

"The case files are at CBI, I can't go there in the middle of the night," Jane protested.

"There's one case file in the house, a copy of it anyway," Teresa informed her.

"The Red John one?"

"The very same," Sarah said as she snuggled more into her sleeping bag.

Jane gulped but rose and left the room, they were all silent waiting to see if she'd pull it off and sure enough she returned holding a thick brown file. Teresa threw the bottle out of the way as Jane placed it in front of them carefully as if afraid it would bite.

Sarah eagerly grabbed it towards her while the others positioned themselves around her so they could see the file. Sarah flipped it open revealing a pile of papers with pictures paperclipped onto them, the first picture was of a smiley face. Drawn in blood.

"Is that blood?" asked Patrick shocked.

"He is a serial killer," Jane pointed out, "he kills people by cutting them with knives, and then draws the face on the wall."

"Why would anyone do that?" Patrick seemed horrified by this and they all shrugged.

"Why is this case so important to your parents anyway?" Sebastian inquired curiously as Sarah showed them more pictures, this time of dead bodies.

"Because Red John killed their friends, and teamates Patrick Jane and Teresa Lisbon. That's who we're all named after," Teresa added as an after thought, "Red John killed them and their baby children."

Silence fell on the five of them and Sarah stopped at the picture of a dead little blond girl.

"That was Patrick Jane's daughter, Red John killed his first family too. That's why he joined the CBI," Teresa explained solemnly and Sarah continued going throught the gruesome pictures.

"It's so horrible, Red John must be some sort of monster," Jane exclaimed sadly, "that's them!"

As she said this she jabbed her finger at a picture of two people, a handsome man with blond curls and a beautiful woman with lustrous black hair and striking emerald eyes. They smiled happily up at them, their faces frozen in the moment of happiness. They looked so familiar, Sarah felt like she should knew them or had seen them before.

"They remind me of someone," Patrick said what they were all thinking.

"What are you doing with the case file?" demanded an angry Wayne Rigsby from the door and they all muttered nothing innocently as he snatched up the casefile and the picture of the his teamates fluttered unnoticed to the floor.

"Never, ever take this. Do you understand?" he snapped, "what the hell were you thinking?"

"It was just a dare," Patrick whimpered and his father's gaze softened.

"Just go to sleep guys okay? And if you have nightmares don't blame me," he said leading Jane and Patrick away, "goonight," he added closing the door.

They all settled into their sleeping bags thoughtfully before drifting off to sleep.  
Unbeknownest the picture of Jane and Lisbon had become tangled in Sarah's sleeping bag, she found it the next day when she got home when her Dad told her to roll up her sleeping bag properly.

Sarah had slipped it into her pocket and promised to return it the Rigsby's when she saw them again. She'd kept forgetting however and three years later...

_Sarah reached a hand into her pocket and pulled out the picture of who she now knew to be her parents. She stared into their faces, they stared sightlessly back. That picture had caused so many things, murder, suicide, truth, tears..._

_Sarah slipped it back into her pocket, it had been the catalyst in her life. It's discovery had prompted the first domino to fall, that knocked all the others until you arrived with her current situation._

_You couldn't stop the cascade of dominos once they had started to fall..._


	3. Chapter 2: Discoveries

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own the mentalist (probably a good thing) and I get no money from this

**Author's Note: **This chapter is majorly sad and I have to warn you of a character death. I know I'm cruel killing off loads of people but I really tried to think what would Red John actually do and I think he'd do this. Thanks again to Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for your reviews :)

Red John shook his head at the twins' messy bedroom. He'd have to make them realize that you needed order. Especially to pull off a murder without making any mistakes, if you got sloppy you got caught.

He began gathering their clothes from off the floor, he'd been debating when to introduce them to the pleasures of murder. It would have to be in the next 2 years as he intended for them to know before they started high school, his thoughts were distracted by something fluttering onto the floor. Frowning he reached down and picked up the photograph.

Red John sat down on one of the beds as became memorized by the smiling couple in the picture. Who the hell had the twins gained a picture of thier parents? Did they know? His eyes narrowed darkly, must be one of the team who'd given it to them. But how had they known?

"Twins!" he yelled loudly, he'd just ask them. The twins hurridly rushed into the room.

"Yes?" they asked together. They did look alot like their parents, had the team figured it out?

"Explain this please," he said waving the picture at them.

"You still haven't remembered to give the picture back?" Sebastian laughed, "it's been like three months!"

"I'm sorry?" Red John wondered confused as Sarah pouted at her brother's laughter.

"When we were at the sleepover that picture sort of got mixed up with my stuff and I keep forgetting to give it back," Sarah explained.

"It's of some old co-workers that were killed by a Red John," Sebastian added, "don't they remind you of someone?"

"Err... yeah I guess," Red John answered surpressing a relieved breath.

"Can we go back to watching CSI now?" Sarah inquired tilting her head to one side curiously.

"Yeah," he said as he handed her the picture, "just remember to give it back."

The twins raced back down the corridor and Red John resumed picking up the clothes, lost in thought, angry murderous thoughts. How dare Rigsby and Van Pelt! How dare they give them a picture of their parents, even if it was an accident, it was just plain wrong. He was going to explain things when he was ready and not before!

Red John stalked angrily into the kitchen and poured himself a drink. He would have to punish them. Killing Van Pelt seemed like the best option, Cho and Rigsby were men and it was more fun killing women. Killing the children was an even less appealing choice, they were the twins' friends after all.

His handsome face contorted into a cruel smile, killing Van Pelt it was. This was going to be fun...

*****

Red John knocked on the door and after a few seconds the door swung open to reveal Van Pelt.

"Hey Johnny, how nice to see you," she said with a smile, "come in."

"Hi Grace, I just wanted to talk to you about something. It shouldn't take long," he explained kindly as he was let into the familiar house.

"Ok sure but I gotta go soon, work you know? Want some tea?"

"Nah, I'm good," Red John muttered as she began making herself some tea. He wandered lazily towards the family room and saw Patrick on the floor watching TV. Slowly he closed the door and locked it with a click before moving to the front door and locking that too. Now no one could get in, or out.

"The sitter will be here soon," she continued chatting away as she finshed making her coffee.

"No she won't," Red John said cruelly bringing the knife he'd been holding behind his back ao she could see it.

"What do you mean Johnny?" she whispered trying to hide the fear he could clearly see in her buldging eyes.

"I killed her so we wouldn't be disturbed," he told her with a smile as he watched her eyes dart frantically around, "have you any idea who I am?"

"Johnny Walker...?" she guessed nervously, probably still reeling from the shock.

"I'll give you a clue. I've killed scores of people, mainly women. Twice I've painted their nails in their own blood. I killed a psychic's family because he mocked me on TV..."

"You're Red John!" she exclaimed and he noticed her anger rising, "oh you bastard! You killed Jane and Lisbon! You killed their baby twi-"

"Who said I killed them?" he said quietly and her face drained of color.

"Sebastian and Sarah are...?"

"Of course, I'm not a monster," Red John's smile broadened as he slowly began his cautious advance.

"Why now? We've known you for years."

"You shouldn't have given them the picture," he told her darkly as she backed into the corner.

"What picture?"

But her words fell on deaf ears as he brought the blade down on her, it sliced through her flesh and she cried out in pain. She was a fighter but eventually succumbed to the sweet embrace of death.

Red John was still smiling as he pulled a kitchen glove out of his pocket and slipped it onto his right hand. He dipped his hand into the fresh blood pooling from her lifeless body and began his master piece on the wall.

He finished his work and stepped back to admire it, walk in the door you'd see the face before moving to the left and finding the corpse. He took off the glove and left the house heading back to his car, he hid the glove in the boot along with the knife and silently drove away...

* * *

"Hi Grace, it's just me again. You're an hour and a half late for work, I'm getting kinda worried... please just call and let me know you're okay," Rigsby said down the phone as he left his 35th message on his own answering machine, it wasn't like her to be so late for work and even when the sitter look a while to show up she still called him. He was really worried now.

"Still not answering?" Cho asked as he came out of his office, it had once been Lisbon's. Alot had changed in the past 13 years, Cho was now the boss and the rules on dating co-workers had changed allowing Van Pelt and Rigsby to marry, they'd kept their own names however as it was easier on the job.

"I'm gonna go make sure she and Patrick are okay," Rigsby said distractedly as he grabbed his keys.

"I'll come too."

There silent driving exceeded the speed limit but neither cared, they had a bad feeling about this. A very bad feeling and it got worse as they went to the door, Rigsby opened it and burst into his house to find a bloody face staring back at him.

"No," Rigsby gasped running into the open plan hallway/kitchen, he turned and time seemed to slow as he saw her lifeless eyes staring back at him, "NOOOO!"

Rigsby screamed as he ran to her body and craddled her in his arms, heart wrenching sobs escaped him as he said `no` over and over again, not wanting to believe the blatantly obvious. It was awhile before anyone approach him...

* * *

Cho sat at his desk with his head in his hands feeling his hatred for Red John burning deep inside of him. It was such a bright, blazing flame with a strong searing heat he was amazed he wasn't on fire. No, he was just burning away from the inside put as the fire consumed him more and more after each death, after each time he continued to evade them. Especially when it was his friends, his team.

He looked up as a man approached him, some guy from forensics that Cho didn't really know although he probably should. He'd only been working at CBI for 20 years after all.

"Yes?" Cho asked tiredly.

"You are gonna want to know this," the forensic guy said excitedly.

"What?" Cho wondered bluntly as his interest increased.

"We ran the DNA from the blood and most of it came back to Agent Van Pelt but one drop didn't," continued the forensic guy, "it was seperate to all the rest and slightly out of the way, which was kinda odd if you thi-"

"Get to the point," Cho snapped and the thinner man jumped back slightly.

"I got two partial hits in the CBI database, a deceased agent and consultant," at these words Cho felt an eerily chill creep through his skin, "the blood belongs to a daughter of Teresa Lisbon and Patrick Jane..."

_Sarah sat up in her cell thoughtfully, she'd cut herself accidently the night before and no one had quite gotten around to cleaning it up yet. If she hadn't pricked her finger trying to help make dinner they'd still believe she and Sebastian were dead._

_A choked sob escaped her as she thought of her brother, losing him was like losing half of yourself. They told each other everything, they knew each other better than they knew themselves sometimes, but now he was dead. She wondered if that was why she felt so dead inside, she felt ready to die of grief. She hoped she would, she'd be better off than now._

_Now when she was stuck in a jail cell after murdering someone. Reluctantly she lay back onto her bed and returned her thoughts to the past..._


	4. Chapter 3: Hitting Home

**Disclaimer: **The mentalist is definately not mine and I get no money from this

**Author's Note: **Hello readers, next chapter is done. Thanks so much to jisbon-sessed and Iloveplotbunnies for reviewing :)

Red John arrived home and popped the trunk where he took out his boots. He brought them into his house and took out the knife and glove, he'd long since realized it was the perfect place to hide weapons without the twins finding it, no one looked in people's boots.

He washed his blade throughouly, threw out the bloody glove and changed his clothes. He started on the laundry, making sure the first thing he washed was the blood from his clothes. That done he realized Rigsby should have found the body by now, pity he couldn't be there to see his reaction but it would be too weird him turning up when he knew they both should be in work.

Red John was feeling quite pleased with himself, he could not wait to see how Cho and Rigsby responded to this. He put on some music, Bach, his favourite before laying down on the couch and pondering the future and how this would affect everyone.

Eventually he realized it was time to pick the twins up and quickly drove off, he always insisted on picking them up from school lest something happen to them. God help whoever would dare attack the children of Red John.

He parked and went to stand beside the fence, his phone started playing some Korean music which he'd assigned for Cho. Probably wanting him to take Teresa and Jane home for him or to CBI.

"Hey Cho, what's up?" he asked cheerily.

"**Johnny, something's happened. Would you mind picking up Teresa and Jane? But drop them off at CBI**," Cho's bland yet sad tone told him.

"Yeah, sure... what's wrong though? What happen-" Red John's voice was concerned but his smile was twisted.

**"I'll tell you when you get here okay? It's not something I'd tell you over the phone."**

"Err... okay. See you soon."

"**See ya, and be careful**," Cho said before hanging up.

Red John banished his smile and waited for the twins to come out, they did so along with the now motherless Teresa.

"Come on, we gotta go pick Jane up," he explained worridly.

"Why?" demanded Teresa as worry played in her tawny eyes.

"I'm sure its nothing, probably just your parents are busy at CBI and want me to drop you guys off there," I told her, easing her vexation, "wouldn't be the first time."

They got into his vermilion beamer and he drove the few blocks to the elementary school, Jane jumped anxiously into the back with Teresa and Sebastian (Sarah was in the front as she'd won rock-paper-scisors).

"Mom and Dad busy huh?" Jane muttered as Red John drove them to the CBI HQ.

Red John parked and strode confidently into the building, in which every single person wanted his corpse to hang on thier wall. What was it now, 7 CBI he'd killed? If you included Jane. He entered the bullpen with the younglings following in his wake.

The new rookie, Richard `Richie` Horn was tapping away at his computer, Rigsby was at his desk staring unblinking at Van Pelt's. Their red headed son was sitting on `Jane's` couch playing with his DSi while Cho saw them from his office and went to greet them.

"Hey kids," Cho murmered forcing a smile, they muttered hello back before squeezing onto `Jane's` couch. Jane made a few attempts to get her father to talk but was promptly ignored, "come with me Johnny," Cho continued leading me into his office and closing the door.

"What's up Cho?"

"It's Van Pelt, she'd dead," Cho told him bluntly and Red John mimed shock.

"Really?"

"Yeah, Red John killed her. I am really gonna kill that sonofabitch," Cho announced passionately, good luck, Red John thought sarcastically, "at least he didn't kill Patrick, just locked him in the family room while he listened to his Mom being murdered."

"That's... awful."

"I know," said Cho bitterly as he sat on his chair, "there is some good news though."

"What?" asked Red John genuinely surprised.

"You know Red John killed some other people on the team? Patrick Jane and Teresa Lisbon?"

"Yeah."

"Well they had newborn twins that he abducted and killed, well so we thought."

"What do you mean?" Red John asked slowly as his heart began to race.

"We found evidence they might be alive."

"Really? That's err... good," Red John tried not to panic, how the hell did they know...? He recalled suddenly about Sarah cutting her finger with a knife, she was still wearing the band aid. Damn them! How lond did it take to clean up a few droplets of blood?!

"I know, I still can't quite believe it," Cho continued, "all this time he'd had them, god knows what he's been doing to them."

"Maybe he's treated them nice," Red John retorted slightly defensively.

"I guess it's possible," Cho shrugged.

"Good luck finding them and catching that bastard," Red John said as sincerely as he could manage, "I have no idea how I'm gonna tell the twins."

"Thanks for the luck, I'll need it."

"Yeah, I better be going, dinner's still cooking."

"Yeah, goodbye Johnny."

Red John turned and left silently leading the twins away despite their protests. Damn! They knew the twins were alive, he'd have to keep things quiet for a little longer. He'd have to convince Cho that he'd killed them...

*****

The twins came into their house and eagerly headed for the kitchen to raid for snacks but their father stopped them.

"Please Dad, we're really hungry," begged Sebastian.

"There's something I gotta tell you first. Go sit down in the family room," he commanded quietly and they did so quickly and silently as they exchanged aprehensive looks with each other, what was their Dad up to?

"What is it Dad?" Sarah asked when they were all seated.

"Grace Van Pelt is dead."

"What?!" exclaimed Sebastian as they looked at him, thier faces riddled with shock.

"Red John killed her."

"Holy shi- talking mushrooms," Sarah quickly corrected herself, still looking stunned.

"I am Red John..."


	5. Chapter 4: Red John's Honesty

**Disclaimer: **The mentalist is definately not mine and I get no money from this

**Author's Note: **Hello readers. Thanks so much to jisbon-sessed, Iloveplotbunnies and Habeous Corpus for reviewing :)

"You're kidding right?" joked Sarah nervously. Her father made no indication that he was joking, he looked sincere and serious as he looked her in the eye.

"No. I am Red John," he repeated the words that sent shivers up their spines. The twins sat their in stunned silence staring anxiously at their father.

"Why?" asked Sebastian eventually.

"Why what Seb?"

"Why kill Grace? Why kill anyone? Why even tell us this?" Sebastian replied looking distraught and sickened.

"People are tools and she outlived her usefulness so she had to pay the price," he told them coldly, his gray eyes seeming to have frozen over with ice.

"Are you gonna kill us?" Sarah wondered quietly, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"Of course not, you're my children. I love you," he answered looking slightly hurt, "I'll answer your other questions later, I just wanted to be honest with you now. You know how I applaud honesty and its your 13th birthday next week, you're old enough to understand. What do you want for dinner? Chinese or Indian? I kinda feel in the mood for something spicy," he added cheerily as if he hadn't just told them he was practically the source of all evil.

"You just tell us you're a famous serial killer and then act like everything's normal?" blurted Sebastian confused.

"It is normal Seb, I've been killing since I was your age," he sais standing up, "in a few years we'll all look back on this and laugh at how shocked you look."

"I don't think this is funny!" protested Sarah.

"Once you've taken the light from somebody's eyes and watched them die you will," he explained frostily looking directly into her eyes as he spoke, "so Indian?"

"I'm not really hungry," muttered Sebastian.

"Fine, starve," he shrugged.

Feeling sick with shock the twins walked to thier bedroom and closed the door before sitting cross-legged on their beds. Neither could quite bring themselves to believe it, that their loving father was actually a cold-hearted murderer.

"What do we do Sare?"

"What do you mean?"

"Should we like call the police or something?"

"No! He's our Dad, Seb, he's family. We can't just turn him in!"

"But he's a murderer! He killed our best friend's mother. He killed Grace. Think of all the people he's killed since he was our age!"

"That doesn't make him any less our Dad! He's the only family we have apart from each other and besides what do you think will happen to us?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"We go into care. They'll split us up, we'll never even see each other again, we'll be abused, miserable, turn into drug addicts and then overdose in some gutter before the year is out."

"Don't you think that's being slightly melodramatic?"

"No Seb, I am not being melodramatic! I'm sure Dad has a good reason, he said he'll explain things later."

"What do we do in the meantime?"

"What do you mean?"

"Hello! Our father killed our best friend's mother, how do we tell her that? She'll never speak to us again."

"We don't tell her you idiot!"

"But I'll still know. I'll still know our Dad's a murderer. I'll still know who he's killed. I'll still know Cho and Wayne are desperate to catch the very man they're friends with."

"Fine then tell them! Turn your own father in," she challenged and he tensed before letting out a sigh.

"You're right, he's still family... maybe we can get him to stop killing."

"Maybe."

Their conversation dwindled as they both sat lost in thought as the shocking news sunk into their surprised minds...

_Sarah abruptly stood as she fought tears. _

_Sebastian had never got over it. The more they were told the more her precious brother had died inside until he was dead for real. He was gone, along with so many others. _

_It wasn't fair! He was always more sensitive. While she tended to do things on impulse, he tended to over think everything. Like when they played chess, he deliberated each move carefully before moving the delicate piece into position while she hastily zoomed her pieces around the board at high speed. _

_Why had he always won and she always lost? Why was he was always white and she always black? Why was he dead and she alive?_

_It wasn't fair! She'd give anything to have him back. And all because of Red John, because of how much he had screwed up thier lives from the moment he took them. She didn't hate him though, despite everything he was the man who had raised her and she loved him. How could she love him? She wasn't sad he was dead though._

_He was right too, she could look back and laugh at the conversation but the laughter was as bitter and twisted as Red John himself. She had taken the light from someone's eyes and stared unblinking as their heart stopped. Was she worse than him? He'd never killed someone she loved but she had, she'd killed them anyway._

_Sarah lay back down and closed her eyes. All her family was dead. She was alone. All she had were her memories..._


	6. Chapter 5: Struggling

**Disclaimer: **The mentalist is definately not mine and I get no money from this

**Author's Note: **Hello readers. Thanks so much to jisbon-sessed and Iloveplotbunnies for reviewing :) Sorry for such a long gap between updates, computer troubles :( time skips ahead abit, hope you don't mind

_Their lives settled back into a regular routine, not that they weren't affected. Sarah had become much more secretive and withdrawn than she had before and Sebastian even more so. The hunt for Red John had intensified since he murdered Grace Van Pelt so he'd lain low, which the twins had been grateful for._

_The twins had done their best to move on with thier lives hoping against hope that there'd be no more Red John stuff, that he lied about being Red John despite his adament belief he was and the comments he made about killing. It was still eating Sebastian up inside, it was so hard on him to carry on knowing what he knew._

_"Seb, I miss you so much," Sarah said aloud._

_"Are you Sarah?" asked a voice she didn't recognize, instantly Sarah sat bolt upright and saw a plump woman entering her cell._

_"Yes. Who the hell are you?" she snapped in reply, irritated for the interruption in her thoughts._

_"I'm Brenda Jenkins, I'm here as your legal guardian," the newcomer introduced herself and sat down beside her._

_"Whatever," scoffed Sarah taking an instant dislike to the woman, Red John had imprinted a distrust of lawyers into her long before she knew he was a murderer. As he had often said humans are creatures of habit._

_"I'm here to help you Sarah, they're going to charge you with murder," Brenda told her gently._

_"Yeah, I sorta noticed," she retorted angrily._

_"You need to tell me what happened, was it self defense?"_

_"No."_

_"We-"_

_"Look I don't care! It's too late to save me woman, 15 years too late," Sarah added bitterly._

_"You mean about your parents. That was very unfortunate, must have been horrible growing up with that monster. Knowing what you know."_

_"Actually it wasn't. Red John was a brilliant father, I loved him and I didn't know about my real parents until six months ago! Now just leave me alone!" Sarah yelled angrily at the woman._

_"Bu-"_

_"How about leave or I'll kill you too!" Sarah continued sitting up and fixing the woman with a cold stare. The woman shifted visiably worried._

_"I'll leave you for awhile to calm down," Brenda said before she left._

_Relieved Sarah lay back down and took out the picture from her pocket. Six months ago was when the tempo of the falling dominoes had increased._

He decided then and there he would tell them, they had had enough time to adapt to the fact he was a killer. Sarah seemed more open to the idea than Sebastian, they'd both have to learn though.

Making up his mind Red John entered the family room where they sat watching TV. He was impressed by how they had grown, they were no longer little children. He was still disappointed they looked similar to their parents, he hated seeing Jane and Lisbon in their eyes, in their expressions but they were still his children. Only now he'd have to tell them that they weren't.

"Twins," he said solemnly as he sat down on the other couch opposite them. Sarah turned off the TV and they turned attentively to look at him, "as you know I'm Red John and I've told you before about my victims."

"You made us memorize their names," murmered Sebastian irritably, he hated talking about this stuff.

"Yes. You know about Patrick Jane and Teresa Lisbon and their twins?" he asked and they bobbed their blond heads in agreement, "well I lied."

"What do you mean?" demanded Sarah instantly.

"I didn't kill them."

"Then what did you do with them?" she inquired as her voice became barely audiable, he was impressed by her intelligence.

"I raised them as my own."

"Y-y-you mean... we're not your real children?" stuttered Sebastian.

"You are mine. Just not in blood."

"You killed are parents?" exploded Sebastian in shock, Sarah just sat still taking it all in, "can I have the picture?" he directed the last at Sarah who handed him the photo of who they now knew to be their parents (she still hadn't remembered to give it back).

"Yes. It was an unfortunate accident, but I had no choice. They should have run faster," Red John explained coldly and Sebastian slumped back, "you're better off without them anyway. Come with me."

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," Red John smiled as he led the shocked twins to the car and drove them away.

He drove to the allocated house and got out, they twins in his wake. Red John picked the lock and went inside, ignoring Sebastian questions of what was he doing.

Red John went into the kitchen where his next victim sat reading the morning paper. Lisa Smith soom to be known as Red John victim number 33. She gasped in shock as she saw them, Red John advanced on her.

"What are you doing? Dad don't!" Sebastian screamed running forward as Red John swiftly brought the blade down, severing her life.

He smiled despite the fact it was faster than he would have liked but he wanted to make sure the twins had seen. He turned to face their stunned faces. Sebastian was trembling as he fell to his knees while Sarah stood transfixed by the now lifeless corpse.

"What have you done?" Sebastian croaked.

"That is how you kill someone," he explained it to them before sliding his hand into a kitchen glove and dipping his hand into the oozing blood, "clockwise. Three fingers. Right hand," he continued as he went over the wall opposite the front door and drew his glorious mark, "always remember the face."

"What have you done?" Sebastian repeated.

"That's how you commit murder my dear boy," Red John said cheerfully.

"You have to turn yourself in to the CBI now," Sebastian announced rather shakily as he stood back up.

"I don't think so," scoffed Red John.

"You are a murderer! You just killed that girl, she was totally innocent. You just killed her..." continued Sebastian distraught, "Sare you agree with me right?"

"I... he's still our Dad, I don't want him to go to prison," she said eventually.

"He's not our Dad! He killed our real parents! Like he just killed that girl..." screamed Sebastian hysterically.

"Just calm down Seb," Red John told him gently.

"Don't you care?! Sare, please tell me you care," he begged of his sister as tears rolled rapidly down his frightened face.

"He's still our Dad Seb," she whispered in reply. She saw the hurt glistening in his eyes at her betrayal before he turned and ran and ran and ran.

_She wasn't sure why she'd sided with Red John at the time and she wasn't any surer now but it was too late to take it back at any rate._

_It was the last time she'd see him alive..._


	7. Chapter 6: Runaway

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Mentalist, and make no money from this

**Author's Note:** Here's the next chapter :) thanks so much to Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :)

Sebastian ran as fast and as far as he could until he was out of breath. He leaned back against the wall, he was in some deserted alley he didn't recognize. It didn't matter. How could anything matter? His life was so screwed up.

He sunk to the floor as tears seeped from his emerald eyes. His father- no his abductor- was a freakin' serial killer for crying out loud! He had killed that woman, Sebastian felt so guilty. He was there, he should have done something sooner, he should have saved her.

He felt so overwhelmed by everything and so lost, so completely utterly lost. His entire life was just a lie, a sick twisted joke. Even his name was a lie. Sebastian Walker. It should be Sebastian Jane or possibly Sebastian Lisbon.

What had he ever done wrong? What had he ever done to deserve this? And Sarah. How could she side with him? So what if he had raised them? He was a serial killer, a sick sadistic murderer who butchered innocent people for fun. How could his twin side against him?

What was the ponit in life? His real mother was dead. His real father was dead. His twin sister had betrayed him. His fake father was a murderer.

The woman's face appeared in front of him, frozen in terror as her life was cut short. He should have saved her! Sobs escaped him. He should have saved her! How could he ever live with himself? He heard his cell ringing suddenly and answered it distractedly.

"Hello?"

"**Hi Seb**," said a cheerful voice on the other end of the line: Teresa.

That was a whole other matter entirely. She was his best friend. She was so beautiful and funny and smart... perfect really. He'd been trying to bring up the courage to ask her out. How could he ever now?

Before he'd always had a secret hope that their father- abductor, he corrected himself- hadn't really been responsible for Grace's death. Now he had no doubt of the opposite. How could he still be friends with her now? When he knew the truth? He could never ask her out now.

"**Seb are you there**?"

"Yeah... look we can't be friends anymore," he forced the words out off his mouth, but it had to be said.

He was never going back and he didn't want her to worry. How could he ever see her again? He was so broken and... tainted, he didn't want to taint her life anymore than he already had. He wasn't sure how but had a feeling Grace's death had something to do with him and Sarah.

"**What? Why?" **came her confused reply.

"Because..." what could he say to make her hate him? "because you're a stuck up bitch," that should do it, he thought sadly as he hung up before she heard him cry.

* * *

Sarah was dumbstruck by everything. Her brother had just left... she felt so guilty but she couldn't quite bring her feet to move after him and he ignored her cries to come back.

"Leave him Sare, he'll come back eventually," announced Red John as they went back out to the car and drove away.

"What if he doesn't?" she asked quietly but he didn't reply.

She went straight to bed feeling dejected and was very aware of the empty bed beside her. Usually they talked awhile before they went to sleep. He'd remind her of her homework and she'd ask him if he was going to ask Teresa out yet, well tease was a more accurate word.

The next day Red John dropped her off to school like nothing was wrong, it was stupid acting like she hadn't seen him kill a woman yesterday, like her brother hadn't run away. She felt so guilty, it was like a thick quilt smothering her as she entered her first class and sat down beside Teresa.

"Where's your brother?" she demanded instantly.

"I don't know... he ran away yesterday," Sarah answered reluctantly, hating admitting it out loud. It made everything seem worse, if that was possible.

"Ran away? Really? Well good riddance," she snapped.

"What the hell Teresa?!"

"When I talked to him yesterday he said I was a stuck up bitch!"

"Wait, did you talk to him on the phine?"

"Yeah... why does that matte-"

"Did you call him or did he call you?"

"I called him, wh-"

"Give me your phone," Sarah demanded holding out her hand, she'd tried calling him and he hadn't answered but maybe he would if it was Teresa. A confused Teresa handed her the pretty pink cell. Immediately Sarah punched in his number and let it ring.

"**Hello?"**

"Seb! Please don't hang up," she begged desperately.

"**What do you want?" **came his tired reply, barely audible as the bell rang ans the teacher entered the room.

"Please come home Seb, we miss you."

"Phones off in class Miss Walker," complained Mr Barton.

"**Sare, he killed that woman! He killed her! Right before our eyes and he's killed so many others... including Grace and our real parents, he kidnapped us!**" Sebastian protested.

"Phones off in class Miss Walker," repeated Mr Barton, "class is now in session, hang up," he continued as he advanced on her to take away the phone.

"Please, just come home and we can talk about this," Sarah told her brother ignoring her teacher as she darted towards the door.

"Miss Walker turn off the cell now or you will be in serious trouble young lady!"

"Why don't you freakin' bite me!" she snapped at the teacher.

**"Sare, I can't. How can you just ignore it? Why did you side against me?!" **came his angry reply.

"We can't talk about this now Seb, over the phone. I'm in class."

"**I'm not going back, don't bother calling me again!"**

"Seb, don't! NO!" she screamed down the line but he had already hung up.

"Give me that," snapped Mr Barton snatching the phone from her hands, "now are you done disrupting my class?"

"Hey! That's my phone!" piped Teresa.

"There are more important things in life than a bloody english class!"

"How dare you speak to me like that!"

"How dare you stop me from talking to my brother!"

"I suggest you shut up and sit down if you don't want to spend the rest of your life in detention!"

"Just fuck off and leave me alone!"

"GET OUT NOW!" roared Mr Barton and she stormed out of the class slamming the door behind her.

* * *

"Feel like telling me why you did that?" Red John asked her later as he was driving them home, it was odd of her to snap like that. She'd probably been trying to talk to Sebastian

"It's not my fault Mr Barton is a total asshole!" she protested, "I was just trying to get Sebastian to come home."

"I figured as much... he'll come around. Eventually," he added in reply, he'd already reported Sebastian missing. He hoped the CBI would find him but he doubted it, they hadn't been able to find him after all, "would you like to kill him? Mr Barton I mean."

"W-what do you mean?" she stammered anxiously directing her eyes away from the window.

"You have to kill your first sometime. It can be whoever you want, man, woman, child... anyone. Your first kill is always special so choose wisely," he informed her seriously.

"You want me to kill him?!"

"You are going to kill someone, when you do I'll be so proud of you," he continued giving her a smile, "but don't rush yourself, rushing gets you caught. When the time and victim is right, you'll know."

"Who was your first kill?" Sarah asked with a morbid curiousity.

"My mother," he said bluntly, "just ask if you want me to show you how to kill again, I have a a few potential targets in mind. I can show how to kill them more slowly, we can even do some nails. But if you want me to show you that it'll have to be someone really special, Cho's wife Elise perhaps..."

"Nah, I'm good for now," she cut in swiftly feeling horrifed, "I'm good..."


	8. Chapter 7: I Love You

**Disclaimer: **You should know by now, I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Interesting chapter, well I think so you finally find out who Sarah kills so enjoy. Warning btw this is very dark: suicide, murder... I'm a happy person seriously! This chapter's dedicated to jisbon-sessed for reviewing every chapter so far and encouraging me to write a sequel in the first place :) hope you don't mind how dark it is, there is happiness in the next chapter...

_The next few months had been tough, Sarah observed sitting back up and takin out the picture to look at again. It was hard adapting to life without her twin, then there was the burden of truth from knowng who her real parents were and then there was Red John's pressuring her to have her first kill. _

_Sarah sighed mournfully as she looked around her cell, she supposed she'd have to get used to it now she was a murderer. It'd be where she was living from now on, well in a prison as opposed to the CBI holding cells but a cell was a cell right? She laughed suddenly, a bitterly sad laugh._

_This morning had been such an ordinary morning! There should have been some warning or something that by evening she'd be rotting in jail..._

The next few months had been hard on Sebastian too. He had fast learned living on the streets was very different to living in their apartment. He'd even bought a knife for protection after some hobo had tried to steal his jacket.

He was hungry. He was thirsty. He was cold. He was filthy. He was lonely. But he never considered going back. How could he with a serial killer who had abducted them?! He still missed his old life though, being on the streets did no make him feel any less guilty about Grace and that woman... he should have saved her!

The guillt gnawed and gnawed away at him. Day after day, night after night. He just couldn't see the point in anything anymore. He just wanted to die, he just wanted it all to end.

He stopped walking as he saw the ragged kid in the shop window. The blond unkempt curls were matted with grime and his face darkened by the dirt associated with sleeping on the filthy ground every night. The clothes were dirty too, they looked worn. The boy looked miserable, the once striking green eyes had faded ino a sea of hopelessness. Sebastian barely recognized his own reflection.

He pulled the photograph out of his pocket. His parents smiled up at him, frozen for all time in a blissful moment of happiness. He's never met them, he'd never even know them because of Red John. He couldn't even summon the emotion of anger against the man who'd raised him. It just made him even more miserable.

He liked to think of his parents as good people, people that would have loved him and Sarah. They wouldn't now. Not with the mess he'd made of his life, and not saving that woman. They'd be disgusted, ashamed, miserable, they'd hate him. That's how he felt anyway.

That's when he decided, he'd do it. He would kill someone: himself. It's not like anyway would care, it's not like he had anything to live for. He had a knife... he just needed somewhere to die.

He went to a public library and quickly searched for an empty house. He found it, the perfect place. It had been where his parents had died, it'd been repaired by the new owners who had since died. Now it was empty. Not for long. How brilliant was he for remembering the house in the case file pictures from 3 years ago? Sebastian thought as he found the place and quickly picked he lock.

This was where his parents had died. He felt connected to them somehow as he wondered through the empty building. Empty. So empty, he thought sadly as he took off his jacket and climbed into the bath tub. He took the picure out of his pocke again and placed it opposite him so he could see it as he died.

He also took his cell phone put of his pocket. He had turned it off after he had spoken to Sarah but had kept it. He skipped through the pictures on it, seeing the people he loved brough stinging tears to his eyes. He had to say goodbye to them, and he owed Teresa the truth.

First things first though. He took out his knife and braced himself before slicing deeply into his wrist and up his arm. He cried out in pain but gritted his teeth as repeated the action, telling himself it'd all be over soon. Still crying silently he thought he'd do one last thing to make his father- abductor he corrected himself- happy. He drew a smiley face on the wall beside him in his blood.

Taking a deep breath he speed dialled Teresa...

* * *

Teresa was sitting in the CBI HQ feeling bored. It was not her idea of a fun to spend Saturday waiting at your Dad's work for him to drop you off at the mall so she could meet Sarah for lunch. She wanted to arrive early to look for sales, Sarah wasn't as interested in fashion as her. In fact her friend seemed very troubled, especially since Sebastian's disappearance. She heard her cell ringing and answered it.

"Hello?"

"**Teresa, you answered**," came Sebastian's releived voice. She felt herself stiffen, remebering his insults.

"What do you want?" she spat down he phone.

"**Firstly to apologize, I didn't mean what I said... I just didn't want you to miss me,**" he answered sounding honest, Teresa wasn't quite ready to forgive him but said nothing. He had runaway after all.

"Really Seb, why are you calling me now then?"

"**Don't talk, just listen. I ran away because I know who Red John is**," at his words Teresa felt her blood turn to ice, he knew who had killed her Mom? "**he killed a woman... I tried to stop him, I failed**," he continued shakily sounding distraught, "**I've known for awhile but I couldn't deny it after seeing that..."**

"Who is he then?" demanded Teresa nervously.

"**Johnny Walker**."

"Your Dad?" exclaimed Teresa in shock.

"**He's not my Dad. Patrick Jane is, I'm his and Teresa Lisbon's son. Those twins he kidnapped... they're us."**

"Oh my god Seb, do you realize how insane this sounds. Your kidding right?"

"**I wish Tessa, I wish**," Sebastian replied sadly, "**don't believe me? Check our birth records, I bet there's none or simply run Sarah's DNA. I'm sorry Tessa, I'm so sorry."**

"Seb..."

"**Just trust me okay? He is Red John, he is**!" Sebastian sobbed down the phone.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"**Because... you have a right to know Tessa, and I love you**."

"Oh Seb," she whispered but he had already hung up.

"You okay?" asked her Dad looking at her worridly from his desk, "you look like you've seen a ghost."

"I think I know who Red John is..."

* * *

Sarah sat at Starbucks waiting for Teresa, probably her Dad taking awile to drop her off. Her phone started ringing suddenly: with Sebastian's ring tone! She rushed to answer it.

"Seb! Seb! You called!"

"**Yeah, Sare... I've told Tessa about Red John. I had to, I'm sorry**," her twin cried distraught.

"Seb are you okay, you don't sound right?" she pressed worridly as her heart started to pound dread through her blood.

"**I... I don' have long left. I love you Sare, you know that right**?"

"Of course Seb, I love you too... what have you done? Please tell me not suicide."

"**I can't unless you want me to lie**," came his anxious reply.

"Seb don't please! Please, we can get through this Seb, please!" she practically screamed down the phone in reply, gaining a number of curious/annoyed glances from other customers.

"**It's too late Sare, it's just too late..." **he answered sorrowfully.

"At least tell me where you are? Please Seb... so I can give you a proper burial," she added hoping he'd listen, if she could just get there in time. To her relief he gave her the address, she knew the street it wasn't far.

"**I love you Sare, and I'm sorry..." **he repeated slurring his words before trailing off completely.

She was already gone, running even. She called 9-1-1 and gave them the address, hoping agains hope it wasn't too late. She raced through the streets and practically catapulted herself through the ajar front door.

"SEBASTIAN!" she yelled as she began searching the rooms.

Her heart practically stopped when she saw the smiling face and then him. She ran over to him crying his name. Their was so much blood, so much... she blinked away more tears as she saw the picture sitting there untainted by the crimson pool still smiling. She gently reached for it and shoved it into her pants pocket.

As she heard distant sirens shrieking louder as they approached, she knew what she was going to do. With a frosty determination she ran from the place and pelted through the streets feeling more determined by each step. Finally she was home.

Red John was on the couch listening to his bleedin' Bach music. He called his hello but it was ignored as she retrieved a knife from the kitchen, she now knew who her first victim was going to be. She reached the family room as he stood.

"What's going on Sare?" he asked looking concerned.

"Seb is dead. He killed himself," she informed him bluntly, watching as his features became shocked and then sad.

She would have pitied him, losing his son, had she not just hardened her heart. She was going to do what her real father had never before managed but had longed for ever since he'd seen that bloody smiley face. She was going to kill Red John.

"I've decided who my first kill is going to be," she announced coldly bringing the knife in front of her.

"Who?"

"You," she snapped with a snarl.

He barely had time to register his shock before she plunged the blade into his flesh. He gasped in pain before falling onto the floor, she knelt down beside him and saw him laughing.

"I love you Sarah," he said as he struggled to breath, "I'm proud of you."

Sarah's face remained impassive as she slit his throat. She looked deep into his eyes as the fire of life left them. He was smiling though, his corpse was acually smiling, she noticed as she stood up slowly.

Red John was dead...


	9. Chapter 8: News

**Disclaimer: **You should know by now, I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Hope you like the chapter, there's a surprise thrown in there ;) Nearing the end of this now, as soon as I can think of a good ending that is! Thanks as always to my awesome reviews jisbon-sessed and Iloveplotbunnies :) Read on...

_Sarah sat up miserably as someone called her name, it was Cho coming to get her for the interrogation. She was released and followed him mutely back to the room, Rigsby was there too as was that woman... Brenda. She sat down beside her facing Rigsby and Cho._

_"Why Sarah?" asked Cho again, his usual bluntness replaced by a resigned sadness._

_"Was it self defence?" prompted Rigsby hopefully. Sarah realized she could lie, she was a good liar and they'd believe her anyway but she felt a weird desire to tell the truth._

_"No."_

_"Was he abusing you?" Rigsby tried again._

_"No, he was a good father about from... you know."_

_"How long have you known?" questioned Cho as Rigsby looked away miserably._

_"That he was Red John? 3 years. That he was my father? Since Seb ran away."_

_"Why kill him now then?" Cho wondered looking defeated._

_"Yes Sarah, why?" said Brenda speaking for the first time looking at her with sympathetic eyes, "they had enough evidence to arrest him."_

_"Arrest him?" scoffed Cho as he and Rigsby both chuckled slightly, "Red John was mine, do you understand? He was mine, I was going to kill him! Me, Sarah not you, how could you kill him?" _

_"You're first kill is always special," Sarah spoke slowly as she recalled Red John's words, "when the time and the victim is right, you'll know. And I knew, I knew I had to. He was even proud of me, he told me he loved me and then he said he was proud and then I killed him," unshed tears now fell from her eyes, "I just knew it was the right thing to do. Wouldn't my real Dad be proud of me? He wanted him to die too and when I saw... Seb... I just knew..."_

_"Seb... is your brother...?" wondered Brenda prompting them all to flash her dark looks._

_"Yes he was my brother. He was my twin brother and now he's dead!" Sarah screamed at the woman jumping angrily to her feet as tears poured from her eyes, "he killed himself because our lives are just some sick, cruel ironic joke of a killer. Seb..." the rest of the sentance was lost in sobs._

_"Sarah," exclaimed Rigsby suddenly as he stood up and went over to her, "Seb... he isn't dead, Sarah your brother is not dead."_

_Immediately the tears stopped and her head snapped up to lock her gaze with his, she saw the sincerity in his eyes. Was it really possible? Could he really be alive? Sarah scarcely dared to hope._

_"The paramedics you called managed to revive him," explained Cho, "he's at the hospital. I-I thought you knew."_

_Sarah just shook her head in response as a smile slowly appeared on her face. He was alive! He was alive! Everything else seemed to fade and become unimprtant, Sebastian was alive. That was all that mattered..._

* * *

_He could hear something beeping. It was an annoying high pitched bleep that was bugging the hell put of him. He forced his heavy eyelids open and came face to face with a machine with a wriggling green line on it. Focusing he surveyed the pristine white room he was currently lying in and overpowering bleach that hung in the air. Either the afterlife strongly resembled a hospital or he was alive._

_Sebastian sat slowly up and glanced at his bandaged arms and the bed he was in, he realized he was hungry. That meant he was probably still alive. Miserably he sank back into his pillows. He was alive. He wasn't supposed to be alive! He was supposed to be dead, he couldn let innocent people die but failed to let himself. Damn._

_"Seb?" asked a small worried voice peering round the edge of the curtain, Teresa. Upon seeing him sitting up a smile played on her lips as she went over to him, "I'm so glad you're alive."_

_"I'm not," he replied bitterly turning away from her beautiful face._

_"Oh Seb, what made you think ending your life would solve your problems?" _

_"My life is the problem," he pointed out miserably, "everything's just a lie."_

_"Was it a lie when you said you loved me?" she demanded and he immediately turned back to her looking hurt._

_"Of course it wasn't!" he protested, "I do love you Tess, I... just wasn't brave enough to tell you before," d__espite himself he felt his cheeks going red as she smiled warmly._

_"I love you too," she announced making him smile for the first time in what felt like forever. Her smile wavered slightly, "just please Seb, don't try anything like that again. You don't have to die, Red John is dead."_

_"Red John is dead?" exclaimed Sebastian in shock._

_"Yeah," said Teresa as if it was obvious._

_"How did... how did... how did he..."_

_"Die?" Teresa completed the sentance and he nodded, "Sarah killed him."_

_"Sarah? Like my twin sister Sarah?!" he wondered looking aghast._

_"Yep. Dad and Cho are holding her at the CBI," Teresa answered looking slightly nervous, "pretty unbelievable isn't it?"_

_"What's gonna happen to her? Is she gonna go to jail?"_

_"I don't really know... she might not if it was like self-defense or something."_

_"He wouldn't have... he wouldn't have hurt her, he wanted us to be killers too. He wouldn't have tried to kill her," said Sebastian shaking his head._

_"Then I really don't know Seb," she replied sadly, "I don't even know what's gonna happen to you."_

_Sebastian leaned back thoughfully as he absorbed the information. He was alive. Red John was dead. Sarah had killed him. Teresa loved him. He managed to smile slightly at that but his mood was still pretty dark. He was surprised at the grief he felt over Red John's demise. A part of him jumped for joy but another part remembered what a loving father he'd been then there was the fact Sarah was probably going to be charged with murder..._

_"Seb, you okay?" Teresa asked concerned as she pulled up a chair beside him and held his hand._

_"Do you really want me to answer?" he wondered surpressing a yawn, he was tired. He found it hard to keep his eyes focused on Teresa all of a sudden._

_"You're tired? They said that's normal," Teresa offered, "you can sleep if you want."_

_"You're really gonna sit there and watch me sleep?"_

_"Uh-huh," she agreed stubbornly tightening her grip slightly on his hand, "I don't want to loose you again."_

_Sebastian managed to smile before his eyes closed themselves. For the first time in months he fell asleep without thinking about watching that woman die, being unable to save her. Instead he fell asleep thinking about Sarah and Teresa, the people he loved. Maybe being alive wasn't such a bad thing after all..._


	10. Chapter 9: Cho's Plans

**Disclaimer: **You should know by now, I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Cho sort of abducted this chapter, hope you like. Thanks to jisbon-sessed and Iloveplotbunnies for reviewing :)

_Cho was sitting at his desk in his office lost in thought. He could still remember when it had been Lisbon's office, he could still remember when she'd been alive. He could still remember how Jane had bugged her before retreating to his couch to lie on. He could still remember a rookie Van Pelt desperate to please her boss while sneaking around with Rigsby._

_He missed that. He missed them. While he'd been the quiet one he had still loved it, they had been his co-workers, his friends. And now most of them were dead. They were simply memories. And it was all because of one man._

_Red John._

_The name still made his blood run cold. Ever since Jane and Lisbon's deaths he'd become obsessed with catching him, like Jane once had he'd have done anything to catch him and not just throw him in jail, Cho had planned to kill him. Cho had planned to do what Jane had wanted, cut the bastard open and watch him bleed slowly to death. Especially after Van Pelt._

_Revenge was the most important thing to him, he was forced to admit, nothing or no one would have stopped him from killing. Not Hightower, not Rigsby, not his wife, not even if his life would have to be forfeit. He had wanted to kill Red John. But he couldn't._

_It was hard to believe the last 15 years of his life had all been because of one of hos closest friends. Johnny... how could he possibly have considered him a friend? How could he possibly not have known who he was? How could he not have realized the twins were Jane and Lisbon's? He felt like a fool._

_Red John had been right under his nose, the twins had been right under his nose. Why hadn't he seen it? He'd always thought they looked familiar, now he knew who it seemed impossible he hadn't seen. He sighed as he glanced at the picture beside his wife, the one of the team. Rigsby and Van Pelt trying not to look at each other, he forcing a smile and Lisbon scowling as Jane smirked triumphantly at something._

_He felt like he'd failed them. Not only had he failed to avenge them, Sarah was going to take the fall for it. It was a bitter irony, Cho decided, that Jane and Lisbon's daughter had been the one to finally fulfil what Jane had vowed to do more than 20 years ago. Sarah was right, he'd probably be proud of her too. His thoughts were interrupted by Rigsby knocking to come in._

_"Hey Cho, I wanted to talk to you," he said gravely as he sat down in the chair in front opposite his boss._

_"About what?"_

_"What do you think? What are we going to do about Sarah?"_

_"What can we do? She killed a man."_

_"Not just a man, a serial killer. She killed Red John!" he shouted before lowering his voice, "Cho, we can't let her go to jail for that. Not for that and especially since she's Jane and Lisbon's daughter. Jane and Lisbon. You're not seriously gonna let her spend the rest of her life in prison?"_

_"What do we do Wayne?! We're officers of the law, we can't just drop a murder charge because the man was a serial killer and she was our friend's child," Cho answered bitterly, as if he wanted this to happen._

_"What if it was one of my kids? What if it was Teresa? Or Jane? Or Patrick?" demanded Rigsby angrily, "would you still throw them in jail for the rest of their lives?"_

_"It's not like I have a choice! Don't you think I'd do something if I could?"_

_"Well..." muttered Rigsby as the fight faded, "it's just not fair. It's just not fair."_

_"I know," agreed Cho..._

* * *

_"Isn't there anything you can do?" inquired his wife later over dinner, "it's just not fair she killed that monster and now has to spend the rest of her life in jail."_

_"I know but there's nothing I can do," protested Cho feeling fed up with this conversation and general situation, "the only way you can get off doing a crime is lack of evidence, self defense or insanity."_

_"And?"_

_"Evidence is pretty damning, she's adamant it wasn't self defense and she's not crazy," Cho explained nibbling on a carrot._

_"Can't you pretend it was self defense?"_

_"If it was self defense she would have said so by now, everyone knows it'd be a lie."_

_"Can't you pretend she wasn't with it when she killed him?"_

_"I'm not a psychiatrist!" protested Cho, feeling slightly guilty thinking of Sarah sleeping in the cell for the night._

_"Fine," Elise sighed in defeat turning back to the food, "what about Sebastian?"_

_"What about him?"_

_"What's gonna happen to him?" she inquired looking concerned._

_"He's probably going to have to stay in a psych ward or something for awhile and then I suppose foster care," guessed Cho, thinking of his impending conversation with the boy tomorrow._

_"That's awful!" she exclaimed aghast, "can't we just look after him?"_

_"You're serious?" he responded disbelieving._

_"Of course! Why shouldn't we take him? We know him and poor Wayne has enough with Teresa, Jane and Patrick... it's not like we don't have room, don't you think it'd be better for him to be with us then some random family? He's your friends son."_

_"I'll think about it, okay?" answered Cho tiredly and Elise nodded as they continued their meal._

_Cho was still thoughtful as he retired early to bed. His wife was probably right about Sebastian, and Sarah. But how was he supposed to help her? The only way she'd get off was with an insanity defense but how could he make it happen, as he said he wasn't a psychiatrist._

_He'd need a psychiatrist to testify it wasn't Sarah's fault, even if it was a lie. But who? Dr Morton would never agree to something like that but who else was there? A distant thought weaved its way through his thoughts. There'd been a case with a psychiatrist who'd seemed close to Jane, Sophie Miller. Would she go along with this insanity thing? He decided he'd track her down and ask her. What was the worst that could happen? He wondered as he climbed out of bed and got dressed again._

_"Goodmorning Kimball," Elise chimed sarcastically, "I think your clock may be a bit off."_

_"I'm going to go talk to someone to try help Sarah," Cho explained grabbing his keys, "be back soon, love you," he added leaving their apartment._

_"Love you too and good luck!" she called after him..._

* * *

_Cho knocked loudly on the door to the address he'd just looked up, Sophie Miller had a nice house if this was the right place. He shifted with boredom before hammering on the door again, the lights were on... the door swung open to reveal an annoyed woman standing there._

_"Yes?" snapped the woman._

_"No need to be so rude," muttered Cho._

_"Forgive me it's just I'm always cranky when someone hammers on my door at 1AM," she quipped._

_"Sorry but its important and your light was on."_

_"I fell asleep with it on. Who are you anyway? You look vaguely familiar...?"_

_"Kimball Cho, CBI," he informed her bluntly, "can I come in?"_

_"Sure... I guess," she mumbled nervously moving aside for him to enter, "want a drink or somethi- what's this about?" she demanded shutting the door._

_"You're blunt."_

_"I'm cranky. What do you want?"_

_"You were close to Patrick Jane, right?" Cho questioned and her demeanor softened slightly._

_"Sort of, I was sad to hear he died..."_

_"He was killed."_

_"By the same guy that killed his family, Red bloody John."_

_"Yep. He died trying to save his twins but Red John took them and raised them as his own. Today one of them killed him," Cho explained deadpan._

_"What's this got to do with me...?"_

_"I need you to say she wasn't can't be held responsible."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"The only way she's gonna get away with this is if she gets an insanity defense, so I need you to tell them she was mental or something at the time of the murder."_

_"You expect me to go along with this?!" exclaimed Sophie outraged, "your whole plan is insane!"_

_"You're her only chance. This man killed her own parents, her brother tried to kill himself because of it, do you know how many people Red John killed?!" Cho demanded trying not to yell, "he deserved to die, you and I both know it. If you care about Jane at all you won't let his child take the fall for this, she's just a kid. Jane helped you, you're the only one who can help Sarah. Think about that," Cho finished handing the subdued woman his business card as he walked out. Praying she'd listen..._


	11. Chapter 10: Hope

**Disclaimer: **You should know by now, I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **You are so lucky I did not leave you on a cliffhanger, I was so close to uploading it just before the verdict but I changed my mind at the last second and went back and wrote the end. It's not the end though, there's gonna be an epilogue to tie things up. Thanks so much to my awesome reviewers Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :) this is dedicated to you two! Hope you like...

* * *

_Sarah was lying on the bed comfortably looking at the faded image of her parents, despite the fact she was locked in a jail cell she was smiling. Her twin brother was alive. Sebastian was alive. All else was secondary to his life so she was smiling as she looked longingly into the loving eyes in the picture._

_"They look happy, don't they?" questioned a voice and Sarah startled leaped to her feet and looked at the unfamiliar woman standing on the other side of the bars._

_"Who are you?"_

_"Hard to believe how messed up he was, all those years ago..." mused the woman half to herself._

_"Who are you?" Sarah demanded again._

_"You can't really blame him after what happened... but its nice to know he was happy, even if it was for just a little while," continued the woman._

_"Who are you?!" repeated Sarah again feeling seriously irked by the odd woman._

_"My name is Dr Sophie Miller," the woman informed her, "you?"_

_"S-Sarah," muttered the younger girl in reply as they both studied each other thoughtfully._

_"You do look a bit a like him, but the eyes I think are your mother's. She had green eyes to-"_

_"What do you want exactly?" asked Sarah not wanting to talk about her mother, it reminded her of the fact she was an orphan._

_"You realize you're being charged with murder? 25 years minimum in prison, you'll be at least 40 when you get out," Sophie told her calmly._

_"I know," whispered Sarah, she'd been trying not to think about that._

_"It's not that bad I suppose, you're Dad was the same age when you were born," Sophie said to which Sarah shrugged not really wanting to think about it, "do you want to go to jail?"_

_"Not really," Sarah murmured shifting slightly as Sophie watched her carefully before sighing._

_Sarah watched as Sophie took out her cell and a bussiness card and punched the number into her phone. It rang a few times before the other person seemed to pick up._

_"I'll do it..."_

* * *

_"Seb?" questioned Cho as he strode into the room, there was a bed with the blond haired boy he knew well and Teresa was slumped on a chair beside it. At his eyes flickered open and Teresa's head shot up._

_"Hi Cho," muttered Sebastian sitting up._

_"How are you doing?"_

_"Better... I guess," he shrugged in reply, "its really true then? About my Dad- I mean Red John and Sare..."_

_"Yeah. I'm afraid so."_

_"I shouldn't have said anything should I? I caused his death... how crummy is that? He is- was a serial killer and I still love him as much as I hate him," he added bitterly and no one could think of a good reply._

_"Why did you run away?" asked Cho breaking the silence as he pulled up a chair._

_"He killed a woman," Sebastian informed him looking directly at him with his boss' eyes, how could he not have seen it before?_

_"He did?"_

_"He... slit... her throat... Cho I tried to stop him, I did try..."_

_"I know you did."_

_"Of course you did!" exclaimed Teresa, "you have a good heart, life is just... cruel."_

_"Don't we all know it?" sighed Sebastian._

_"Yeah," agreed Teresa and Cho together._

_"What's gonna happen to my sister?" asked Sebastian pleadingly._

_"She's gonna be charged with murder," Cho answered bluntly._

_"Can't you do something?" begged Teresa._

_"I'm trying Tessa, don't give up hope," Cho said suppressing a smile, Sophie had agreed already to help. He was feeling positive she'd get away with it._

_"What's gonna happen to me?" questioned Sebastian quietly._

_"Who's the one doing the interview?"_

_"I thought this was just a friendly visit," replied Sebastian with a half-hearted Jane-esque smile. How could he not have seen it?!_

_"It's both Seb. You might have to stay in a psych place till they say you're okay to go but then if you want... you can stay with me and Lisie. Sarah too."_

_"Really?" wondered Sebastian and Cho nodded at his genuine smile, "thank you..."_

* * *

_Sarah sat nervously in the court room chair as she watched the Judge read the slip of paper containing the jury's verdict. She bit her lip nervously as she glanced at her lawyer, Mr Denson who looked apprehensive and at the expressionless face of the female Judge. That woman could give Cho a run for his money at having unfazable features._

_"Would everyone please rise," the Judge boomed and Sarah jumped up to stand unsteadily on her feet, "could the foreman of the jury please read the verdict."_

_Sarah stared unblinking, her heart clenched as the large foreman swallowed nervously before speaking, "on the count of murder in the first degree we find the defendant Sarah Walker... not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect."_

_Sarah couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face as she heard the verdict and the Judge dismissed the charges banging her gavel. She was free! She shot Sophie an appreciative glance in the audience and noticed the smiling faces of Cho, his wife, Rigsby and the Rigsby children and... Sebastian!_

_They all began filing out of the courtroom, herself included as they regrouped in the corridor outside. They were all still smiling as she looked for her brother, she hadn't seen him since he'd tried to kill himself. He'd been at a hospital and she'd been remanded. She didn't see him._

_"Seb...?" she questioned frowning._

_"Sare!" he exclaimed delightedly behind her._

_She turned to see her twin standing a few feet away, he stood strong and she noticed the tears in his eyes mirroring her own. At the same moment they ran forwards and threw their arms round each other. She hugged him tightly to reassure herself he was there, her precious twin brother. She'd missed him so much. Words couldn't describe the joy she felt._

_"I missed you so much," he said pulling away finally._

_"I missed you too, Seb and I'm sorry... you know for everything."_

_"I'm sorry too... but none of that matters now," he replied as he smiled warmly at her, she returned his smile and they both hurriedly wiped their eyes as they turned back to the others. They were practically family._

_They _were_ family..._


	12. Chapter 11: The Dead Live

**Disclaimer: **You should know by now, I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **I know I said there'd just be an epilogue but after reading Iloveplotbunnies' review I had this idea and I have not been able to get rid of it, hope you like! Thanks Iloveplotbunnies for the idea and for reviewing and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :)

* * *

Jane was running and then the house exploded, he remembered being flung through the air and then nothing...

...Until he opened his stinging eyes and groaned in pain, his back was sore like something had burned it. Blinking away soot he realized he was lying on the grass outside Red John's house but where was the baby he'd been holding?

Panicking he sat up and scanned his surroundings of shards if glass, pieces of furniture... apart from Lisbon there was nothing else. The twins were dead. His children were dead, again.

Tears formed in his eyes as he gently reached out to Lisbon who reluctantly opened her eyes. He watched her sit up and look around for the twins, they exchanged a look as tears rolled down their cheeks.

They had failed. They had failed their children, they hadn't been able to protect them and now they were dead. They heard distant sirens but neither wanted to have to face the team or even paramedics so they slipped away...

_Jane opened his eyes and glanced at the sleeping form of his wife, Lisbon. Her eyes were closed as she dreamt of what he hoped were less depressing dreams than he was. Jane was used to it though, bad dreams had dogged him ever since Red John had killed his family._

_Bastard. Jane still wished he could kill the SOB but alas, the serial killer had died in the explosion along with his precious children. He'd give anything to go back in time and protect them, anything. Jane sighed wistfully, it was stupid wishing for things you knew you could not have._

_He and Lisbon had both been so miserable they'd just stayed at his house for days, weeks, months even. They were both so depressed, how could they not be? But they hadn't realized the team thought them dead until they read their obituaries in the paper._

_That had been a shock, such a shock to discover that but neither had wanted to correct their mistake. They hadn't felt like going back so instead they'd gone away. They'd started by travelling through the US, then Canada, Mexico, South America, Africa, Europe, Russia, Asia, New Zealand, Australia... they'd travelled the world slowly but surely they'd made their way around._

_And now?_

_They'd run out of places to travel. And there was Micah to think about it. Micah was a surprise they'd both discovered in Israel 14 years ago, both of them had actually fainted when they'd been told she was pregnant. They still loved him though although it did make them miss the twins they'd never know. He could probably do with some stability in his life..._

_"Patrick, you awake?" Lisbon mumbled blinking open her eyes._

_"Uh-huh."_

_"You were thinking about what we do now?"_

_"Uh-huh."_

_"And?"_

_"I don't know," Jane admitted, "the logical thing to do would be go back to America but... its been 25 years and they all think we're dead."_

_"I miss them," she muttered propping her self up with her arm, "do you ever wonder how they all are? Whether Van Pelt and Rigsby are still together? Is Cho the new boss? Do any of them have kids? Are all of them still alive?"_

_"Yeah," Jane sighed, "so what do we do...?"_

* * *

_"Wow, I cannot believe we're in California! I mean really, how awesome in this?!" Micah exclaimed delightedly as they arrived outside their hotel, "I feel like I'm in a movie or something... I mean really!"_

_"You get used to it Micah," Jane muttered as they checked in, their houses had probably been sold by now._

_"I cannot believe you guys were from California the whole time and didn't tell me," Micah continued ignoring his father's comment, "I mean really!"_

_"You didn't ask what state we were from," pointed put Lisbon as they got in their elevator, a red haired woman got in with them in her mid-twenties Jane guessed... the same age the twins would be._

_"That's cuz I just assumed it was from some boring state that no one evers of, g'day ma'am," he added to the red head with his father's charming smile._

_"G'day to you too, although tomorrow will be better," replied the woman smiling broadly._

_"What's so special about tomorrow?" questioned Micah curiously._

_"I'm getting married!"_

_"Congratulations ma'am."_

_"You don't have to call me ma'am, my name is Teresa but most people call me Tessa," she informed him._

_"I'm Micah Samuel, but most people call me Micah," he introduced himself, "and these are my parents," he added motioning to them as they were standing behind Teresa._

_"Nice to meet you all," said Teresa turning to smile at them and it hit Jane suddenly, she looked alot like Van Pelt and her eyes looked alike Rigsby._

_"Likewise," continued Micah cheerfully as Jane and Lisbon exchanged looks, "must be cool living in California."_

_"I guess. Where do you live?" shrugged Teresa._

_"Here, there, everywhere... we travel alot just got here from Australia," explained Micah._

_"How exciting!" exclaimed Teresa, "me and my soon-to-be husband were thinking of going there on our honeymoon."_

_"I'd recommend it."_

_"Aren't you nervous about getting married tomorrow?" cut in Lisbon wanting to direct the conversation around, hopefully to family to find out if she was who they suspected._

_"No, I can't wait!"_

_"Bet you'll have lots of family there," Jane guessed._

_"Yeah I guess... I wish my Mom could be there though and my fiance's parents too," answered Teresa wistfully._

_"Your Mom is dead?" Jane pressed._

_"She was killed," said Teresa darkly causing Jane and Lisbon's hearts to drop, both suddenly wishing they were wrong about her._

_"I'm sorry to hear that," Micah offered as the elevator pinged to a hault._

_"It was nice talking to you, bye," waved Teresa as she got off and vanished into the press of others hurrying in._

_Jane kept hoping he was wrong as they continued their ascent to their floor, he was desperate to talk to Lisbon about it but considering Micah knew nothing of it he decided he'd have to wait till they were alone..._


	13. Chapter 12: Shock

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: ** Thanks so much to Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing, as ever you two are the best! Enjoy the chapter :)

* * *

_"I'm gonna hit the hay," announced Micah yawning when they reached their hotel room, "I'm pretty jet-lagged."_

_"Okay, have a nice sleep," Jane said leading him towards his room._

_"Yeah sweet dreams, beware bed bugs and all that," added Lisbon quickly, both wanting to be rid of him to discuss their plans. Micah however raised an eyebrow at them for their eagerness to dismiss him, he was his father's son in that sense, "what?"_

_"You two are acting odd," he pointed out._

_"It's just odd being back here after so long, you understand?" replied Jane swiftly._

_Micah didn't look convinced but still went to bed, Jane couldn't help but smile sadly. Micah was a good boy, he loved his son. He still wondered what his daughter would be like now, if she'd lived and his twins, if they'd lived. Jane sighed, no parent should outlive even one of their children let alone 3. He glanced at his wife as they waited a few minutes for Micah to fall asleep._

_"Do you think Van Pelt is really dead?" Lisbon asked quietly._

_"I don't know, wanna go find out?"_

_"Not really," said Lisbon quickly pacing nervously, "maybe this wasn't such a good idea, coming back. Ignorance is bliss they say."_

_"I disagree."_

_"What do you propose we do? Stroll into the CBI and tell them we're alive?"_

_"Uh-huh."_

_"Are you insane?!"_

_"Wouldn't surprise me."_

_"I thought you didn't want this?"_

_"I changed my mind."_

_"I..." Lisbon faltered, Jane could tell she was afraid. Afraid all her team were dead, he moved over to her and wrapped his arms around her. For awhile they stood there silently._

_"Can we go to the cemetary? I'd like to visit my children's graves," Jane whispered eventually and she nodded._

_"What about Micah?" she asked suddenly, "he'll be shocked to find us gone."_

_"Then we can get back before he wakes up. Come on..."_

* * *

_"GRACIE!" roared Cho hurtling towards his three year old daughter, who looked up at him the picture of innocence with her little pigtails. Spoiled only by the dirt she had been gorging on the moment before._

_"What?" she asked politely, unfazed by his desperation as he knocked the dirt out of her hands._

_"Gracie, you know we do not eat mud," Cho explained patiently feeling relieved she was wearing an old dungaree as opposed to the beautiful pink outfit Elise wanted on her._

_"But I like it!" the little girl protested, "so do my friends."_

_"Your friends?"_

_"Look," she said pulling a handful of earth worms out of the large pocket and letting them writhe on her hand._

_"Gracie," gasped an exasperated Cho as he took them from her and put them on the ground, "you are a human, they are worms."_

_"Rakeist!"_

_"Do you mean `racist`?"_

_"That's what I said," she replied stubbornly._

_"Let's go back inside okay? We need to be getting ready for Seb and Tessie's wedding," he informed her taking her hand and leading her back into the church._

_"Why Sebby and Tessie have a wedding?"_

_Cho just rolled his eyes and sighed, she had to be the most difficult, stubborn child he had ever met in his life. She was worse than all Rigsby's kids and the twins put together! He still loved her though._

_"No, why do _we_ go?"_

_"Because..." Cho stopped when he noticed something very odd on the corner of his vison._

_He stopped dead in his tracks at the huge oak door of the church and fixed his eyes on the couple. It was impossible... how could they be alive? It was impossible..._

_"Hello?" said Gracie swinging on his arm._

_"Go inside with uncle Wayne okay?" he answered quickly shooing her inside before striding over to the couple who now had their backs to him._

_"Cho? Where are you going?" questioned Rigsby jogging up beside him._

_Cho just ignored him as he reached the couple and tapped on the shoulder of the couple who spun startled to face him. All four gaped in shock upon seeing the others as recognition flashed on all their eyes. Both of them had a few more lines on thier faces, Lisbon even a touch of gray at her temple but his friends were alive._

_"H-h-ho-how a-ar-are y-y-yo-you...?" stuttered a completely dumbfounded Rigsby. Jane and Lisbon exchanged a quick glance._

_"We better explain," began Jane but at hearing his voice Rigsby's eyes rolled into his skull and he fell unconcious to the ground, "oops..."_

_Cho watched amazed as his _dead_ boss turned to glare at the_ dead _consultant, he knelt down beside Rigsby still watching the _dead_ couple. They really were alive._

_"It's not my fault!" Jane protested as she knelt down beside Rigsby, "really it's not!"_

_"Just go get help or something!" snapped Lisbon venomously and he darted away._

_"Did anyone actually die in that fire?" mused Cho half to himself._

_"What do you mean?" asked Lisbon puzzled..._

* * *

_Jane scrambled away to find help for Rigsby, he felt bad for making him faint but it wasn't exactly his fault. Jane got to the edge of the cemetary and realized he had no cell phone, he hadn't for years. He scanned for the nearest house and went over to it, politely knocking on the door._

_No one answered, a quick scan of the front yard and driveway revealed the owner was almost certainly out. He decided to pick the lock and use their phone to call for help. He immediately began but no sooner had the door swung open he heard a gun click behind him._

_"CBI freeze!" commanded a strong female voice, "put your hands in the air."_

_"I assure you, this is a total misunderstanding," Jane improvised but still did as he was told, "you see I live here and I just locked myself out of the house."_

_"Really?" exclaimed the cop sarcastically, "how odd yesterday the owner of this house was an african-american female."_

_"Oh?" queried Jane silently cursing his error._

_"So Greta Holmes how nice to see you again!" continued the cop in a cheerful tone, "remember me? Sarah Walker, we met yesterday when you told me your car was stolen? How's that working out for you?"_

_"Err... good?"_

_"Excellent! You should have mentioned you were going to cut your hair, curl it and dye it gold."_

_"Yeah vanity is my greatest weakness."_

_"You don't think changing your skin color was a bit of a stretch?"_

_"Well Michael Jackson did it, didn't he?"_

_"And the sex change?"_

_"Spur of the moment thing, being a woman bored me," Jane continued smiling slightly at the CBI agent's sense of humor._

_"And I suppose you have proof of ID Greta?"_

_"I prefer Graham now," he improvisioned and heard Sarah laugh slightly before his wrists were clasped by handcuffs, "come on! I didn't even do anything!"_

_"Tresspassing, breaking and entering-"_

_"Entering? I never entered the building," Jane continued to protest as he was marched out of the yard._

_"It counts, now shut up so I can read you your rights."_

_"But..." Jane began but stopped when he spun to face Lisbon's eyes._

_Sarah jumped back in equal shock and he felt his own eyes widening as he took in the sight of her. Her who had his golden curls, her who had his wife's emeralds for eyes, her who had a mixture of them both mingled in her face. Jane was looking at his daughter..._


	14. Chapter 13: Reactions

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Whoa really long chapter, hope you don't mind! Thanks as ever to my awesome reviewers Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :)

* * *

_Jane was completely lost for words as he stared at his daughter, it didn't seem possible. But it was, there she was standing there with an identical look of shock to his own. He watched her stunned as she pinched her arm._

_"Guess I'm not dreaming," she muttered, "but how... you're dead..."_

_"I was about to ask you the same question," he replied and they both laughed nervously while tears stung their eyes._

_"Turn around," Sarah commanded suddenly._

_"Why?"_

_"So I can un-handcuff you."_

_"Oh," Jane mumbled turning around and after a second the handcuffs were removed and he turned immediately back to hug her tightly._

_For awhile he simply stood hugging his daughter as tears fell from his eyes, she really was alive, his child was alive. Of all the amazing sights he'd seen on his travels with Lisbon, this was the best. He wasn't sure how it was possible but right then he didn't care._

_"I see you've already met," came Cho's voice suddenly and both pulled away from the embrace and he noted how Sarah hurriedly wiped her eyes._

_"Why didn't you tell me my real father was alive?" Sarah half-demanded turning to face him._

_"I didn't know!" protested Cho._

_"Yeah, he didn't... err... know... We didn't... tell anyone we were still... you know, alive," Jane cut in pathetically as he struggled to form a sentence, his mind still shocked but delighted at the same time._

_"Why did you fake your death?" pressed Sarah, "wait `we,` is my real mother alive aswell?"_

_"Yes," Lisbon told her tearfully as she came up behind Cho and ran to embrace their child. Jane watched happily as more tears fell unabashed down his face._

_"I think I need a drink, or to at least sit down," Rigsby announced he joined them, "by the way thanks for leaving me unconscious on the ground in a cemetery."_

_"You're welcome," replied Cho as Lisbon and Sarah pulled apart._

_"Your daughter's eating dirt again," Rigsby bluntly informed him and Cho scuttled off quickly. They all stared at each other in amazement for a minute, Sarah's head turning from him to Lisbon before Jane could break the silence a cell phone rang which Sarah answered._

_"Well I'm Rigsby," Sarah said finally taking command, "we can't stand staring at each other all day."_

_Cho reappeared carrying a toddler who looked about 3, she had her father's dark hair and eyes as she looked at them smiling childishly. Vaguely he wondered if Cho had been the one to raise the twins... but then how come the papers had said they were dead?_

_"Let's go then," added Cho and they kind of shuffled down the sunny street after him as he led them to a nice looking coffee shop. They sat down and order some coffee or tea in his case, Jane still wasn't sure if this was weird or some kind of hallucination._

_"So, where have you been the last 25 years?" Cho asked brightly once they all had their orders._

_Jane longed to ask the same question but decided it'd be best to answer the question first, as his child and his friends they had a right to know. So he told them about their travels, about Micah, about getting married. He made sure to emphasize how they thought the twins were dead, his patience was rewarded by Sarah filling him in on what had happened to them. __He was extremely shocked by what had transpireed. _

_Red John had raised them, Red John had lived along with the other twin Sebastian (which he and Lisbon were delighted about) and then he became even more shocked when he learned of Sebastian's attempt at suicide, about Van Pelt and about how Sarah had killed Red John. He couldn't help but feel a slight loss that he had not been able to kill him personally but also pride that his daughter had been the one to it. _

_"And that's everything really," Sarah concluded, "except for Seb's wedding tomorrow... Damn! We're supposed to be preparing it right now."_

_"Damn," Rigsby agreed groaning, "my daughter's gonna kill me if the wedding's screwed up."_

_"We can still go back and get everything prepared," pointed out Jane noting how it was late afternoon._

_"Seb's gonna be so happy to find out you're alive," Sarah informed them beaming at them with his own smile._

_"Can we do anthing? I bored," complained Cho's daughter Gracie. Jane found it sweet how the two of them had named all their children after them Teresa, Jane, Patrick Wayne, Grace... Micah had been the name of the man who delivered him so that's what they'd called him._

_"Yeah we're going to go carry on getting ready for Sebbie and Tessie's wedding," Cho told her smiling._

_"Can I play with my friends?"_

_"Maybe..." Cho answered evasively as they paid and went back to the church and carried on making the arrangements, he and Lisbon helped out where they could both to be useful and they felt they owed it to their son. Jane couldn't help but feel slightly guilty that they'd grown up without them for all these years... if they hadn't chickened out and left then they would know they were alive before now._

_He tried not to think about that though, Sarah seemed not to mind. On the contrary she seemed to be positively glowing with joy as was he and Lisbon. He wondered what Micah would think, on that note he felt panicked. Micah was sure to have awoken by now and found them gone. It was getting dark by now and Gracie had fallen asleep._

_"What?" asked his wife noticing his anxious look._

_"Micah."_

_"Oh crap he's probably awake and wondering where we are."_

_"You should go to him then," prompted Sarah, "I'm supposed to be seeing Seb... half an hour ago."_

_"Won't he mind you're late?" questioned Lisbon curiously._

_"Nah, I'm always late..."_

_"Don't we know it," mumbled Rigsby to which Sarah cast him a dark look, "we are pretty much done though and Cho you should probably be taking Gracie home."_

_"Yeah," agreed Cho._

_"Okay," Jane muttered scowling, he was reluctant to be away from his daughter in case something happened to her._

_"You don't look convinced," Cho pointed out._

_"I just... don't want to leave you alone," he offered mildly but Sarah only laughed._

_"I'll be fine," she announced, "I have my trusty glock and I am the best shot in the whole of the CBI. Go to your son, Micah. My brother, it'll be interesting to meet him."_

_"Uh-huh," murmered Jane uncertainly as he thought of the daunting task of explaining all this to Micah. He knew nothing of Red John, or his first wife and daughter or the twins... they hadn't exactly gotten around to telling him._

_"Then let's go..." Rigsby said, "and we can all see each other again at the wedding, you will be there won't you?"_

_"Of course!" exclaimed Lisbon, "we're not going to miss our son's wedding."_

_"I won't tell him you're alive, it'll be a big surprise," Sarah grinned, "and that covers a wedding gift."_

_"You didn't get your twin and your best friend a wedding gift?" Cho repeated slowly._

_"I meant to... today but then I found my real parents were alive," she explained glancing at them proudly, "and it sort of skipped my mind."_

_"You should get them a gift anyway," Cho told her stubbornly._

_"Maybe on a CBI Agent's salery."_

_"You're a CBI agent."_

_"Yeah but I'm a mere rookie and you're the team leader."_

_"Fine," Cho gave in bored of sparring with her, Jane quite enjoyed it though he was proud of how she'd turned out even if it had nothing to do with him or Lisbon._

_They said their reluctant goodbyes before heading back to their hotel still in a euphoric state of happiness, their twins were alive! How pleased he was they'd decided to return... `Ignorance is bliss` indeed! He wished he'd have known they were alive, he'd have hunted Red John until he found his precious children and got them back._

_His happy bubble burst when he saw a panicked Micah greeting them as they got back to the hotel room. He instantly launched himself at them into a hug with worry scrawled all over his features._

_"Where were you?!" he demanded, "I was out of my mind with worry!"_

_Jane failed to suppress a chuckle at his son telling him that, traditionally it was the other way around. Not that Micah ever did that, he was a good boy and while no one could be perfect vanishing for a day without telling them was not something he frequently did._

_"Micah," said Lisbon seriously, "you better sit, we have alot to tell you..."_

_"About what?" asked Micah quitely as the three of them sat down at on the comfortable chairs around the TV._

_Lisbon took a deep breath before explaining, about Jane's wife and child being murdered by Red John, how he'd wanted revenge, how that was how they met, then about the twins, about how they'd thought they were dead, then about how they were alive and everything Sarah had told them. Micah listened in silence sitting very still with a deadpan expression._

_"Well?" Jane asked worried by the lack of reaction from his son._

_"How... Why didn't you tell me all this before?" Micah inquired still with an unreadable expression much to Jane's annoyance._

_"We... It just... never seemed like the right time," Lisbon answered struggling to find the right words._

_"`Never seemed like the right time?` That's your excuse for lying to me my entire life?" demanded Micah, an edge of anger to his voice._

_"Well... It was hard for us to talk about," Jane cut in._

_"So?" snapped Micah jumping to his feet, "I tell you everything and all you tell me is lies!"_

_"Come on Micah, don't be like that," Lisbon said soothingly but looked worried my Micah's unusual outburst._

_"I have every right to be like this!" Micah yelled furiously, "why did you lie to me?! Don't you care about me at all?! Don't you think I deserved the truth?!"_

_"Micah calm down," Lisbon practically begged, "its not like that and you know it."_

_"Do I?!" he shouted even louder, "I don't know you at all!"_

_"Please Micah, calm down and we'll talk about this," Jane offered but Micah was having none of it._

_"Calm down?! Screw you!" Micah screamed storming off into his room, "I hate you both!" he added before slamming it shut._

_Jane was stunned, he'd never seen Micah act like that before. He had a horrible gnawing feeling that if he'd known about Red John and the twins before he would be just as happy as them at what they'd discovered. He turned his thoughts back to reality as he noticed Lisbon with her head in her hands, he put his arm gently around her._

_"My son hates me," she muttered miserably._

_"No, our son hates us," he corrected causing her to glare at him briefly, "look, he's just upset we didn't tell him before."_

_"We should have done."_

_"Should've, could've, would've, didn't."_

_"Are you trying to cheer me up or make me feel worse?"_

_"He'll come around in time," Jane told her gently, "eventually..."_


	15. Chapter 14: Before the Wedding

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Wow 3 reviews for one chapter! For this story that is amazing :) thanks to my awesome reviewers jisbon-sessed, Iloveplotbunnies and Anna :) sorry if the wedding stuff in inaccurate last time I was at a wedding I was like 6, hope you like anyway! Sorry for the mix up, I was being chased off to bed and selected the wrong document, please forgive me...

* * *

_"Micah?" Jane questioned pushing the door carefully open._

_His lay on the bed turned away from him, Jane figured he was awake and simply ignoring him. He sighed as he sat down on the corner of the bed, he truly was an awful father. His first child he had pracically gotten killed, the twins he'd managed to lose them and allow them to be raised by the thing he hated the most and Micah he had managed to somehow completely shatter his trust. _

_"Micah look, I know that you're mad okay? I can't exactly blame you but... please come to the wedding. I know everybody will want to meet you and even if you hate us, deep down you want to meet them too, at least your brother and sister... Please Micah?" Jane said hopefully._

_He watched Micah remain unmoving and sighed again as he stood to leave, glancing miserably back at Micah before going to the door. Lisbon was still anxiously sipping her tea as he sat down opposite her, he shook his head solemnly to indicate Micah's decision. They resumed their tea in silence._

_"I'll come," Micah announced as he joined them, he refused to meet their eyes however._

_"That's wonderful!" exclaimed Lisbon grinning from ear to ear._

_"I'm not doing it for you!" he snarled angrily and her face fell._

_"Let's go them," offered Jane in an attempt to relieve the tension, "we'll just clean up the dishes and then we'll go."_

_"I'll wait in the lobby," muttered Micah darkly exiting._

_"Think he's ever going to forgive us?" asked Lisbon sighing._

_"Was that a rhetorical question question?" responded Jane seriously but she glared at him anyway as they did the dishes._

_Finishing up they left the hotel room and both looked shocked as they saw Micah chatting away happily to Sarah in the hallway. Jane froze instantly feeling an odd swell of pride at having some of his family together, Sarah noticed them though he saw Micah's smile die instantly on his lips as they clumped togther beside the elevator._

_"We were just on our way to the wedding," said Lisbon awkwardly failing to surpress a smile at seeing Sarah again, they all were smiling except Micah who was expressing a sullen silence, "I see you're met Micah."_

_"Yeah," Sarah answered glancing at him, "I just came to check on Tess before I remembered you saying you were at the same hotel so I came to meet you."_

_"Good. Great. Let's go then," Jane grinned waving at the elevator as it pinged open..._

* * *

_Sebastian sighed nervously as he paced the grand church, repeating his vows over and over again to himself. Forgetting his vows was probably the worst thing he could possibly do at the wedding, he was extremely nevous about the whole thing. Not the marriage part, he couldn't be happier they were getting married._

_It was the ceremony that was bothering him, he'd wanted just a small gathering but Tessa had wanted a big wedding with loads of people in a church no less. As long as the essentail people were there, (his future wife, Sarah, Cho, Elise, Gracie, Rigsby, Patrick, Jane) he didn't mind. _

_Of course it would be nice if Van Pelt was alive to see her daughter marry, Sebastian thought repressing a pang of guilt and his parents... his real parents. He pulled the picture out of his pocket and glanced at their smiling faces, how he wished they could be here but alas it was impossible. They were dead by Red John's own hand, he wished he could know them but wishing was pointless. _

_It didn't stop him from wondering, would they be proud of him? Would they even like him? He wished Sarah was back yet, she'd gone to check on Tessa but would be back soon. He felt slightly guilty thinking about her, she'd put so much effort into his wedding... he was lucky to have such a wonderful twin._

_"Seb?" inquired Elise as she scuttled over to him, "you need to go get changed, you're getting married in less than an hour and arriving guests will think it weird you're not changed."_

_"Neither is... Gracie," he pointed out, he liked Sarah's idea of wearing normal clothes to a wedding._

_"If I change her into her formal clothes now I guarantee you will have a trail of dirt and worms behind Tessa on the ailse," explained Elise and he was forced to agree, "go on with you."_

_He took one last look at the church before heading towards the room assigned for him to change, he felt a slightly euphoric moment of giddiness. He was actually getting married! And to the absolutely perfect woman, it never ceased to amaze him how such a beautiful and talented woman could settle for him of all people._

_He started to change attempting to aviod looking at the shameful scars from when he's tried to kill himself, it did make him feel shame. How could he have been so selfish to try and end his life? He shook his head and continued getting changing, awkwardly fiddling with the bow tie. _

_"Seb, you decent?" called Sarah knocking in her usually subtle was as she swung open the door and appeared grinning behind him._

_"Why do you bother asking if I'm decent if you barge in anyway?" he wondered half to himself._

_"That is your deepest concern on the day of your wedding?" she replied._

_"No... Shouldn't you be getting changed also? You know Tessa might kill you if you're there in jeans and an old sweater," he responded teasingly and she scowled._

_"She damn well better not after all I've done to make this happen."_

_"I know and I am eternally grateful, you're the best Sare," he told her honestly sobering as she walked forward and hugged him tightly._

_"Someone's gotta take care of everything," she whispered before pulling apart and abruptly smiled, "wanna get your wedding present?"_

_"Can't you leave it with the rest? I still need to get this bowtie done."_

_"Seb! Please," she begged, "what is the one thing you want more than anything else in the world apart from to marry Tessa?"_

_"Errr..." he pondered and she grabbed the picutre of their parents from the pocket of his discared jeans, "our parents to be here? Sare, you know that's..."_

_The words died in his throat as he saw his parents standing in the doorway, they looked older than in the picture and his mother had touches of grey in her hair but it was them. He immediately pinched himself, this had to be a dream some kind of weird dream or hallucination maybe. They remained standing there._

_"You're really alive?" he gasped still in shock as the three others nodded, "how is that...?"_

_"I'll tell you later, I gotta go get changed," said Sarah slinking away as his parents moved over to him, their smiling faces a mirror of what he sure his own had became._

_His mother reached out and carefully tied the bowtie, "there, perfect," she mumbled tearfully before emracing him gently, he still couldn't believe she really was alive. They both were alive, actual flesh and blood, alive. Forget wonderful, Sarah was a miracel worker._

_"You look... my son..." babbled his real father lamely struggling to find words, Seb felt the same and instead hugged him to, relishing the fact they were alive._

_"I'm so... amazed your alive... its amazing," gasped Sebastian pulling away as his eyes darted between both of them._

_"It's equally amazing that you're alive too," his real father informed him which answered his other question._

_"Are you staying for the wedding?" he asked nervously._

_"Of course!" laughed his real mother, "we wouldn't miss it for the world."_

_"Come on Seb, parents," called Sarah cheerfully appearing in the doorway changed into a pastel blue dress, "wedding time..."_


	16. Chapter 15: The Wedding

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **You have no idea how hard this chapter was to write and I had to research all this wedding stuff and vows and everything! Still pretty boring but weddings aren't that exciting in my opinion, no offense anyone who loves weddings. Thank you so much to Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :) and also drj13 who I forgot to thank in the last chapter.

* * *

_"How did you manage to bring our parents back to life?" Sebastian questioned of his sister/best man as they stood waiting for Teresa to arrive._

_"It's a long story," she replied hastily, "shouldn't you be thinking of your bride?"_

_"Oh crap yeah! What if she doesn't turn up?" he whispered looking worried, "or if I forget my vows?"_

_"Then you should have written them on your hand like I suggested," Sarah whispered back._

_"What if she doesn't turn up?" he repeated shifting uncomfortably deciding to ignore her comment._

_"She will Seb, I know it and you know it," she told him comfortingly with a slight smile, "everything'll be fine, you'll see. Or else there will be hell to pay."_

_"Did I ever tell you you're brilliant?"_

_"Not nearly often enought."_

_"What if she doesn't turn up?" he asked again as the wedding march started up._

_"Seb!" she scolded and he swallowed nervously and he looked away from her to his parents sitting in the front row smiling at him along with the Rigsby's (minus Wayne) and the Cho's and a dark-haired teen he didn't recognize._

_"I still can't believe our parents are alive," he exclaimed quietly before looking worried, "think they're mad our last name is still Walker and not Jane or Lisbon? Think we should have changed it?"_

_"Seb focus!" she hissed in his ear, "by the way the kid you don't recognize is our younger brother."_

_"What?" he gasped in shock._

_"Shhh, here she comes," hushed Sarah and he turned back to the aisle and saw his bride-to-be. _

_His heart skipped a few beats in joy, firstly as she hadn't ditched him and secondly as she was stunning. She looked magnificent in her long white dress with her glorious smile, she was beautiful (he noticed not for the first time) but looked angelic with the sunlight streaming in behind her as she was led by a very proud looking Rigsby. _

_She was beaming at him all through the ceremony which made him feel alot calmer about all this, (he'd never been to a wedding before) but managed to not to feel like the idiot he was grinning like. He was overjoyed though, how could he not be? The priest began speaking, droning on and on for a while with his attention drifted between his parents, brother, soon-to-be wife and the priest. His head was still spinning in a kind of euphoric shock, he pinched himself just to check again that this wasn't a dream before his attention snapped back to the priest._

_"Do you Teresa Marion Rigsby take Sebastian Walker to be your lawfully wedded husband, through sickness and health, through sorrow and joy and to cherish and to love as long as you both shall live?" _

_"I do," agreed Teresa and if it was possible his smile widened._

___"Do you Sebastian Walker take Teresa Marion Rigsby to be your lawfully wedded wife, through sickness and health, through sorrow and joy and to cherish and to love as long as you both shall live?"_

___"I do," Sebastian agreed._

_"I take you to be my partner in marriage and in life formally before all these people but you should know my body, my heart and my soul already belong to you and no matter what happens I shall stand by you," Teresa spoke her vows and he felt touched but with a horribly sinking feeling he realized he'd forgotten his own vows, crap._

_"Should have written them on your hand," came Sarah's voice in his ear so quietly no one else could hear._

_"Shut up! What do I do?" he shot back equally quietly and cleared his throat nervously._

_"Improvise," Sarah offered._

_"Well... erm... what can I say? I feel so... overwhelmed to be standing here before all the people I love, even those I though were dead," he stuttered nervously as he became aware of the press of eyes fixed squarely on him, "but love doesn't die, it stays there always a comfort, a life line even when all else seems lost... a light when you are surrounded my nothing else but darkness... Tess, I have always loved you and you have always been there for me even when I didn't deserve it... I love you and I promise I am always going to stand by you."_

_He knew his sounded pretty stupid compared to hers even as the roomful of people remained smiling as the priest continued the ceremony, he surpressed giving a relieved sigh that no one had laughed at him forgetting his vows. On the contrary everyone looked happy save little Gracie who was fighting to stay awake._

_"Sebastian Walker, you may now kiss the bride," announced the priest breaking into his thoughts. He readily did so hoping he wasn't blushing at kissing her in front of all these people, despite the fact they had done so before and even lived together, "I now present to you Mr and Mrs Walker," the priest said loudly as they pulled apart and the room erupted into applause, even a sleepy Gracie..._

* * *

_Micah was actually enjoying himself at the wedding reception, not that he'd admit that to his traitorous parents, but he was. His siblings seemed as eager to know him as he was to know them, although they also wanted to know his parents too which meant he had to talk to the others their too. They were quite friendly to him but he couldn't help but feel slightly overshadowed by his parents reputation. He learned alot about his parents that he hadn't previously known which just made him feel worse, like they were rubbing salt into a fresh deep wound. _

_He still couldn't believe they had kept so much from him and lied to him his whole life. His Dad had been a fake psychic? He hadn't known that. His Mom had been a CBI agent? He hadn't known that. His Dad had been married before? He hadn't known that. His Mom had three brothers? He hadn't known that. His Dad had had a daughter? He hadn't known that. Red John? He hadn't known. The team he'd never heard of... the list went on and on. _

_Micah sighed as he moved through the grinning crowd, if only his parents hadn't lied to him he could be ecstatic with delight. He would be okay, pleased even with everything if only his parents had bothered to tell him beforehand. That's what stung, he told them everything, he trusted them as he had no one else with their constant moving but they had failed to mention all these things. It made him feel rejected and hurt. Despite that a sliver of guilt kept attempting to worm its way into his mind for his outburst yesterday, he managed to keep it at bay though._

_He was managing to enjoy himself, aside from his siblings he'd also won the Cho's over with his mastery of Korean, having spent time there before. Rigsby was friendly enough and all his children seemed to have inherited that trait, he noticed they still mourned the loss of this Grace Van Pelt who he had never heard if either. _

_"Hey Micah, having fun?" offered Rigsby kindly walking over to him, the man was eating again. _

_"Yeah," he agreed smiling slightly._

_"Must be fun having travelled so much, furthest I've ever been is Iowa."_

_"Never heard of Iowa," Micah stated honestly, "where is it?"_

_"It's a state in America, don't you know the US states?"_

_"No."_

_"Well you will eventually, I know... most of them," Rigsby announced to which Micah laughed._

_"What are we talking about?" questioned Lisbon as she joined them, Micah's laughter immediately died and his joyful expression was blocked by one of stone. Both of them noticed this._

_"Did you guys like... fall out or something?" asked Rigsby scowling slightly._

_"No," said Lisbon quickly._

_"Yes," said Micah at the same time which made Rigsby's frown deepen._

_"It's nothing really," Lisbon informed him looking slightly embarrassed._

_"Your son hating you because you are a lying bitch is nothing to you?" Micah snapped cruelly and he saw the hurt in his mother's eyes._

_"Micah don't talk to your mother like that," his Dad chided quietly as he appeared beside them._

_"If it makes you feel better I hate you too," Micah told him with a cold voice and watched the hurt flash in Jane's eyes also, "I need some air," he added walking away onto the balcony and sighing deeply. He didn't want to hate his parents but he felt so betrayed and they didn't even seem to care..._


	17. Chapter 16: After the Wedding

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT own the mentalist! Or make money from this

**Author's Note: **Thanks to Iloveplotbunnies and jisbon-sessed for reviewing :) round of applause for them please! Happy, fluffy chapter this, probably too cheesy in my opinion but I grow bored of rewriting it. Hope you like anyway!

* * *

_"Okay..." muttered Rigsby seeming embarrassed, "is there any paticular reason he hates you or does he have like a Jekyll/Hyde thing going on?"_

_"We... never told him, much... basically nothing about our lives before," Jane explained guiltily, "he's... feeling slightly betrayed."_

_"Slightly?"_

_"He'll come around eventually," Lisbon said firmly as if trying to convince herself._

_"Hey everybody!" called Teresa cheerfully as she joined them, "wanna dance Daddy? It's an old song."_

_"Okay," agreed Rigsby waving at them as he went onto the dancefloor with her._

_"I need some air," announced Jane giving his wife a quick peck on the cheek before going in search of the balcony, he was hoping to talk to Micah but ended up getting lost and finding himself on a different balcony. He turned to leave and then noted he had the perfect view of Micah on the balcony talking to Sarah. He knew he shouldn't spy but he had come here by accident and he was Patrick Jane._

_"... it could be worse," Sarah was saying._

_"How? Everything I know is just a lie," Micah responded sounding bitter._

_"You could find out your Dad is a serial killer, who killed your best friend's mother. Then you could find out that actually he's not your Dad and he kidnapped you and killed your real parents," Sarah spoke as matter of factly as possible but Micah still started in shock, Jane didn't blame them. He felt bad she'd had to live through that._

_"Is that what happened to you?" Micah asked in such a quiet voice Jane barely heard him._

_"Yeah. I know they lied to you Micah but they never meant to hurt you, some things are easier not to talk about..."_

_"What are you doing?" demanded his wife as she came in behind him, he motioned for her to be quiet, in a quieter voice she asked "are you spying on your children?"_

_"No," he whispered quickly, "we are spying on our children."_

_Lisbon surpressed laughter as she came beside him and leaned over the balcony to look down on them, it was sweet seeing them together. Jane was still in partial shock they were alive._

_"Of course they still love you Micah," Sarah exclaimed to something they'd missed Micah saying, "you'll see, and they are actually worried about you."_

_"Is that why you came to talk to me?"_

_"No, I just don't want our family to have a rift in it already."_

_"Our family?"_

_"That's what we are isn't it?" said Sarah and it looked like she was smiling._

_"Yeah, I like the sound of that," agreed Micah appearing to smile also,__"thank you," he said before he hugged his sister and he had to stop place a hand over Lisbon's mouth to stop her gasping loudly in delight._

_"What are you two doing out here? It's freezing!" Sebastian told them as he joined them on the balcony._

_"Family stuff," stated Sarah as she pulled away._

_"Uh-huh... It is a relief to see you here though, I noticed Micah and our parents had vanished so I was half afraid I'd been like hallucinating or something," Sebastian explained laughing suddenly, "don't think insane hallucinations are the best way to start a marriage."_

_"Oh yes congratultions by the way," offered Micah kindly, "Tessa seems like a great person."_

_"Wait did you say our parents were gone?" interrupted Sarah._

_"Stop interrupting Sare, very rude of you," Sebastian chided teasingly._

_"You are the one interrupting our conversation actually," she pointed out, "and besides I arranged this whole thing so I should be able to do what I want."_

_"I'm the one that got propsed!"_

_"I'm the one that helped you pick a ring!"_

_"Helped?" Sebastian laughed suddenly, "didn't you get confused and think he was selling carrots?"_

_"What?" questioned Micah looked bewildered._

_"You know gold has karats? She asked why he was selling carrots with rings," Sebastian explained and Micah's laughter joined his brother._

_"It's not that funny!"_

_"Yes it is!"_

_"Well Micah did you know he forgot his vows at the wedding?" Sarah offered failing to surpress laughter as Micah laughed harder._

_"It's not that funny!"_

_"Yes it is!" answered Micah and Sarah together as the trio fell about in more laughter. Jane smiled proudly at them, if nothing else they got along with each other._

_"At least I didn't write them on my hand like you wanted!" Sebastian said in between bouts of laughter. Jane watched with them with a kind of a bittersweet feeling, he loved seeing them laughing together but if he had protected them in the first place this wouldn't be so new to everyone._

_"Are you spying on your children?" demanded Cho quietly as he appeared beside them._

_"Wait till Gracie's older then you'll understand," whispered Jane in reply smiling at his still laughing children._

_"Haha, might wanna come inside," Cho offered, "Sarah might think you're snipers and shoot you."_

_"That's a good reason to go inside," agreed Lisbon and they followed Cho back to the main group._

_The song had finished and another one began playing, a very old song Patrick Rigsby commented nearby. Jane felt his own heart soar._

_"You used to like this song," he told his wife slyly._

_"I do like this song," she ammended._

_"Wanna dance?"_

_"No."_

_"Come on, doesn't this bring back memories?"_

_"Like you causing brawls?"_

_"Fine let's not dance," he said quickly blushing slightly at the memory but she only laughed._

_"Okay I will dance," Lisbon agreed and he gratefully brought her onto the dance floor, dancing to the song `More Than Words,` like they had so many years ago. Good times Jane noted, very good times. His smile widened when he saw Sebastian reappear and start to dance with his wife, Micah and Sarah were on the edge of the dancefloor talking amongst themselves._

_The song ended and he and Lisbon wandered away as some new music he didn't recognize started up. _

_"Mom? Dad?" questioned Micah as he came over to them, "I'm sorry I was acting like such a jerk, I don't really hate you."_

_"It's okay Micah, we know you're just upset," Lisbon offered, "and we're sorry too, we should have told you before. We meant to but... We're sorry."_

_He saw a hint of a smile on his son's face and placed a hand on his shoulder, "I swear we meant to tell you, we never meant to hurt you. We do love you and don't you forget it," he added and Micah nodded and smiled._

_Jane surveyed the room finding his old team and lost children, his amazing wife and his precious son. He beamed widely at everyone feeling nothing but joy, everything was okay. He was home..._


End file.
